


Welcome To BillDip Week, Peasants

by PandaGod03



Series: Panda God's BillDip Collection [4]
Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: 1950s, Amusement Parks, BillDip, Billdip Week, Couldn't do the seventh day forgive me, Day At The Beach, Ice Cream, M/M, Seven days of writing somebody get me the caffeine, Summerween, cipherpines, cracks knuckles, let's do dis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-26
Updated: 2016-07-01
Packaged: 2018-07-18 13:05:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 56,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7316269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PandaGod03/pseuds/PandaGod03
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>June's almost over? Gasp! Julying! But remember, reality is an illusion, BillDip Week has started, Panda God is crazy for doing this, buy gold bye! Here are the themes below, you little small-minded peasants! Hahahaha!</p><p>1 - A Day At The Beach<br/>2 - Chillin With Ice Cream<br/>3 - Coaster Crazy<br/>4 - Date At The Aquarium<br/>5 - Grease/1950s AU<br/>6 - Summerween<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Trippin' on Skies, Sippin' Waterfalls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bill's angry. Of course he is. Who wouldn't? And anyway, who wouldn't want to try and get away from their problems by going to the ocean next to the beach? Well, things don't really go his way this time, now does it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just came back from camp. I'm bone-tired. I cried on the way back. I laid on my bed, about to fall asleep, until my phone vibrates telling me that I have a notification from BillDip Week's Tumblr exacTLY TWENTY MINUTES AFTER I GOT HOME AND IT WAS STARTING THE VERY NEXT DAY. 
> 
> So here I am. If I wasn't so tired I would have written much more fluff than this sorry excuse of angst. I am so sorry, this story makes no sense, it's the middle of the night (;__;)

_"I AM THE MIGHTY BILL CIPHER!"_ Bill bellowed, raising his arms up to the sky. _"FEAR ME!"_

To support his words, Bill reared his foot back and gave the sandcastle a mighty kick, causing sand to go everywhere. 

And when he meant by everywhere, he also meant Dipper's face. 

Dipper spat out some sand, putting the bucket down and giving Bill an unimpressed look. Beside him, his twin sister Mabel was getting sand out of her hair, but she was laughing joyfully. It probably didn't bother her as much because there was already a ton of seaweed in her hair in the first place. "Was that really necessary, Bill?" Dipper sighed irritably, giving him the stink eye. 

Bill gave him his most innocent grin. Which, in a sense, made him look sinister. 

Putting his hands on his hips, he chirped, "Deal with it, Pine Tree."

"I've been dealing with you for the past four years, don't even-" Dipper warned.

Bill put his hands up to his chest in surrender. Grinning, he dropped down to his knees, setting himself down beside Dipper. He managed to wrap his arms around the brunet's shoulders without the said brunet punching him in the gut for doing so. 

"Oh, don't be such a buzzkill, Pine Tree!" Bill sang out. He tilted Dipper's body over to him, the human letting out a grunt of disapproval at his actions. "The sun's out, summer's here, you haven't killed me-"

"Yet," Dipper grumbled. 

"-and what's better is the beach is practically empty today! Don't cha want to take advantage of this?" Bill asked, incredulous. To force his lover to see his point of view, he reached out and forced Dipper's chin up to the ocean.

He wasn't lying when he said that the beach was practically empty. There were no sign of human life anywhere except for the Pines twins and himself (in a way). Which was weird, considering that it was the first day of summer. The whole of Gravity Falls should have been here, sunbathing or playing. It didn't help that the beach was just renovated just two years ago. This place was practically a goldmine, if he had to say so himself. 

"Hey, why _is_ the beach empty?" Mabel inquired, giving the ocean a quizzical look like the water would tell her the answers. "Yesterday, it was packed with practically the whole town! There wasn't even a warning or anything about not going today..." She put two fingers on her chin, looking like she was in thought.

Bill gave the twins a nervous laugh, holding Dipper closer to himself. He wasn't about to say that it was him who made sure everyone except them get a dream about staying away from the beach. And er, some other things. 

"Dude, you literally just destroyed everything I've done for the past two hours!" Dipper finally complained, throwing his bucket to the ground in frustration after seeing the damage that Bill had caused. 

"Aw, don't look so sad, I can just make it reappear!" Bill said happily, turning his head to grin at Dipper. The boy merely gave him an unimpressed look with a sour pucker of the lips and a wrinkle of the nose. 

To prove his Pine Tree wrong, Bill raised his hand and snapped his fingers. In an instant, the sand in front of them was clouded in blue mist, before it disappeared and presented Dipper's exact sandcastle. With mini sand figures of them to boot, of course. 

Since they've arrived here in the morning and the sky was turning orange and red to indicate near the end of the afternoon, they've done many things for the first day of summer. They played some volleyball, in which Bill had accidentally spiked the ball to Dipper's face and apologized with a whole dozen gold coins from the bottom of the ocean. They took a walk down the docks with ice cream, not telling Dipper that a bird had pooped in his ice cream. They had buried each other near the ocean for the hell of it, almost losing Mabel to the tide as a result. 

"Seeeee? You have no faith in me, kid!" Bill grinned. He swiveled his head around in one quick sweep, planting a lingering kiss on Dipper's cheek before the boy could argue with him.

Dipper's small scowl disappeared, relaxing his face into one of disgruntlement. The human crossed his arms in front of him, pouting when he realized that Bill was still grinning at him. It only made the blond grin wider, loving how his little human looked so vulnerable. 

"Of all places, did you seriously have to bring us to the beach?" Dipper groaned, picking up his bucket and tools to make more parts to his little castle. Beside him, Mabel squealed in delight, picking up her own things to help out with designing the sandcastle. 

"Yep!" Bill chirped, popping the 'p'. "It's so I could see you shirtless without having to ask for it."

"Wha-" Dipper looked down at his body, realizing that he was indeed shirtless. His own skinny body was splattered with sand and mud, his blue swimming trunks the only article of clothing on him. With an amused clear of the throat, Bill found that the boy's chest hairs had never appeared, even as a young adult. Dipper looked back at him with a glare. "Okay, you know what, fuck you."

"Yes, fuck me indeed," Bill said happily.

Dipper threw the bucket at his face, much to Bill's utter amusement. The demon merely ducked his head to the side before the human could successfully hit him in the face, but he allowed one strike to hit him across the shoulder just so the brunet could be satisfied. For uh, now at least. 

"Jeez, why are you so happy today?" Dipper asked in disbelief. 

"And why are you so gloomy?" Bill asked back. 

"He's _always_ gloomy!" Mabel cut in. 

"Hmm. Good point."

"Ugh," Dipper groaned, burying his face in his hands. Behind him, the sounds of waves hitting rock filled the air, sounding much like a lullaby Bill would often use to help him sleep at night. Of course, nothing beats Dipper's soft snores. But it was a good backup track in case Dipper forced him to sleep on the couch.

Mabel elbowed him on the side, catching Bill's attention. The brunette leaned in towards Bill, putting a hand over her mouth to keep from eavesdroppers. "I bet you ten bucks that Dipper secretly enjoys this."

"No deal. Because you already won," Bill told her with his obnoxious grin still plastered on his face. He saw how Dipper smiled at the ocean when the boy thought no one was looking, or how at peace he looked just sitting there under the shade. 

Mabel snorted, leaning away from him to move on to harassing her brother. 

Shaking his head when Pine Tree let out a squeak of surprise as Mabel put seaweed on his neck, Bill began placing seashells on the castle to make it look more grand. Laughter between the pair filled the summer air, putting a small smile on his face after his grin had faded away. The wind had finally picked up here, brushing his hair to the right and making him look more disheveled than usual. 

Shaking out a seashell Mabel had piled up beside him, Bill carefully placed it on one of the sides, using a nail to dig it right in. He smiled softly, proud at what he had created. 

But seeing that the seashell had fallen once more, Bill frowned and raised his hand. Snapping his fingers, the blue coat of mist came back to cover the poor castle, raising up all the seashells from the sandy floor to the castle itself. 

When the mist disappeared into nothingness, the twins quieted down, looking down at the castle, then back up at Bill. Both Pines were looking at him with mixtures of surprise and confusion. 

"What?" He chuckled. 

"Using magic twice in a row?" Mabel demanded. She raised up her hand, counting off her fingers with her tongue out. "The last time you used magic more than once in a week was five months ago!"

"And so?" Bill raised an expectant eyebrow. 

"You're Bill!" the twins exclaimed. 

"I'm well aware of that, Shooting Star, Pine Tree," Bill hummed. He twirled his wrist, producing a beach ball from his magic and passing it over to Shooting Star, who squeaked out in both delight and surprise. "What's it to ya?"

"Weren't you the one who told us you swear not to use magic unless it was a dire situation?" Dipper frowned. "Rebuilding my castle was one thing, but twice in a row? You sure you're okay, Bill?"

Bill grinned at him, one that assured the brunet that he was perfectly fine. Fine, utterly fine. "Of course! I go back on things sometimes, you knuckleheads should know that by now. I'm fine."

His eyes flickered behind his Pine Tree. His grin only widened from ear to ear, which usually freaked out the twins (though they grew quite used to it, he could tell). Pointing behind Dipper, he chirped, "And anyway, get your heads out of the gutter. There's some people who want to see you."

To his words, both twins turned their heads right behind them in curiosity. What they found was a whole bunch of people in bathing suits, charging for the beach with umbrellas and picnic blankets and toys underneath their arms. They were cheering, arms pretty much raised as they raced to freedom for the cooling water. Bill held his breath. 

He watched the twins out of the corner of his eye, keeping the air in his lungs to prevent him from breathing heavily and drawing unwanted attention to himself. But thankfully, the twins merely watched in amazement as the empty beach they were sadly occupying was being filled with residents from Gravity Falls. They didn't see the blue clouds rolling in from under the folks' feet, indicating the third time he had used his magic in a span of ten minutes. 

Usually, he wouldn't have been so reckless like this. Not anymore, after he found himself that morning five months ago. But today...

"Whoa!" Mabel yelled, eyes widening at the sight of hot shirtless guys passing through with surfboards tucked underneath their armpits. "Mom, forgive me for what I have sinned. Or, be sinning soon." She might as well have caught money on the ground, because she was gone like a bullet the next moment after. 

The yells and screams of people filled Bill's ears as more and more folks rolled in, much to Dipper's shock. The boy didn't seem mad about the sudden mod, but he didn't seem quite happy with it either. The only indication of his confusion was his furrowed brow and wrinkled nose, qualities that made Bill's fake grin blossom into a true, genuine soft smile.

He braced himself on a hand, leaning against his braced arm to get a better look at his lover. Messy brown hair, a cute little nose, pressed soft lips- what more could a demon ask for? Of course, a demon would ask for an intellectual mind, a kind and open heart, and a brave soul. Qualities his little human had already possessed. 

It was no wonder why Bill had given up everything just for the boy carefully making his sandcastle in front of him, just for the sake of his own twin sister happy. 

Finally, _finally,_ Dipper had noticed Bill's gaze. He glanced up at Bill under his lashes, a cute little pout that fit him nicely on his lips. Sitting cross-legged and pouty like that made the brunet look like a child again, which sadly made Bill coo in his own mind. Ask Bill Cipher ten years before that he'd fall in love with a simple human for the sake of being in love and he'd turn your head into a squirrel. And ask him now and he'd laugh merrily, giving Dipper Pines an affectionate kiss on the forehead to show that he was indeed, still madly and deeply in love. 

It was funny. Really funny that the world thought it would be ironic if Bill was to be taken away on the same day he found love. 

"What? Is there sand on me?" Dipper asked, looking down his bare chest for specks of sand. He brushed off his chest just in case, making his skin pelted with leftover sand from his palm instead. 

Bill laughed, leaning over to help him brush away the rest of the sand. He ran both of his hands down Dipper's chest, almost sensually, for a few seconds. Dipper watched him with a small frown tugging at his lips, still wondering why his boyfriend had been looking at him so weirdly just moments ago. 

Bill stopped, running his fingertips over the skin one last time. He looked up at Dipper with a small reassuring smile, the brunet smiling back at him, almost confusingly. Dipper just seemed happy to see Bill look happy himself. It was a rare sight to see the demon truly smile instead of ones he used to joke around, and Bill knew Dipper liked those smiles best. 

So he smiled. A bigger one that hurt his face a little. But it was worth it, seeing Dipper look mildly surprised before letting out a laugh of near relief. 

He scooted forward on the sand, closer to Bill. Placing his hands on each side of Bill's face, Dipper peered into his eyes as if he was looking for something in them. They were silent for a moment, the sounds of waves and seagulls and people being truly themselves on this beach filling the air for them. 

His thumb reached outward and ran over Bill's curled smile. He ran it over top, then on the bottom lip. Bill's lips twitched to his touch, making Dipper chuckle once. He pressed his forehead against Bill's, his grouchy attitude being replaced by one that only Bill had seen when they were alone. Alone together and in love and just _there._

"You seem a little happy today," Dipper mumbled, his lips barely brushing against Bill's. 

Bill tried not to show his wince. Of all words to describe what he felt today, _happy_ was not one of them. Not cheerful, not delighted, not contented. He was in the most horrible mood of his whole existence but he vowed to make sure to get through this day with a smile to spite this whole stupid dimension. 

"Well I'm with you, why wouldn't I be happy?" Bill chirped against his lips, hands coming up to hold themselves against Dipper's wrists. Not to remove them, just to simply stay there. 

To his pleasant surprise, Dipper didn't make a snarky response, instead moving closer just by half an inch to close the space between them. It wasn't a chaste kiss, but a deep one that made Bill melt against his partner. Subconsciously, Bill was the one to scoot closer, hands dropping down to hold onto Dipper's lap. 

When Bill was also the one to deepen their kiss, Dipper sighed contentedly against his lips, bringing a tingling sensation down his spine. 

Then he remembered that this would be the last kiss they would ever share. 

And as if a whip was cracked against his back, Bill held onto Dipper harder, nails almost digging into the other's back. He kissed Dipper harder, more needy, more _want_ and Dipper knew it. 

The brunet pulled away gently, hands flat on Bill's bare chest. His eyes were filled with concern as they flickered around Bill's face, looking for something that would give him an answer. And when he spoke, Bill had to chomp down on his bottom lip to keep from blurting things out, right then and there. 

"Are you okay, Bill?"

"Fine," Bill automatically responded. Even the lone word sounded like a lie ringing in his ears. "I'm...okay. Are _you_ okay? Do you need me to get you anything?" Each word sounded quieter and quieter, as if he was descending down stairs into darkness. 

Dipper pushed his shoulder playfully, as they always had done in the past to tease the other. "I'm fine," Dipper assured him. "But I'm asking _you_ , Bill. You've seemed...a little off when you woke me up this morning?"

"Aren't I always a little off?" Bill hummed, lifting a hand to play with Dipper's curls as the boy spoke. 

Ignoring his playful hand, Dipper continued on, watching him with knitted brows. "Well, yeah. Yeah, true. But you're more off-er than usual, you know? Usually, when you wake me up, you'd pin me to the bed and-" Dipper cut it off there, face turning a bright shade of pink. He coughed once, his gaze turning away from Bill's amused one. "-you'd be playful, I guess. You'd tease me, we'd dress each other, then we'll eat breakfast, then bam, moving on to the next day."

"And your point is?" Bill drawled. 

"My point is that you were acting strange this morning," Dipper said bluntly. "You woke me up with a single kiss next to the eye then left the room. When I came downstairs to eat breakfast, you weren't there. Mabel told me you went to the beach and told her to tell me to go there later. Why?"

"I wanted to surprise you," Bill simply said. He tilted his head to the side, watching his Pine Tree squirm to find the proper words. The pit of his stomach churned, trying to worm emotions into his head. But he kept them down and kept a straight, stoic face. "You like surprises, don't you?"

"Yeah, of course I do," Dipper sighed, turning his eyes back to Bill. The demon kept playing with his hair, twirling a strand of it around one finger and tugging it once in a while. He wondered if anyone was watching them from the beach, but soon came to the conclusion that, well, he honestly didn't give a single damn. 

"Then what's the problem?" Bill frowned. He was seriously getting confused here, even if he already knew half the reason. "Tell me the problem and I'll make it go away."

"My problem is _you_!" Dipper blurted. 

In an instant, Bill had dropped his hand away from Dipper's hair. "Oh," was the first thing he said. Then he swallowed up his pride, and swallowed the lump in his throat, and said, "Well, I'm glad you think so because it wouldn't matter now, I guess, I-"

"No, no, no!" Dipper said in a panic, eyes wide. He leaned backward, scooting away from Bill to give him a better look. He shook his hands in front of him, trying to explain to Bill exactly what he had meant, even though he suddenly looked frustrated. "It's- it's not _you_ entirely, Bill. It's just- just well- you're- I don't- I-" 

He shook his head, blinking once and giving Bill a pleading look. A frisbee landed beside them, embedding itself in the sand a couple feet away from Bill. A little boy who seemed to be about ten came up to them, running to go and get his frisbee. Bill snapped his fingers without hesitation, poofing the frisbee out of existence and letting it appear in the boy's hands. He knew how angry Dipper got when he was mean to little kids. And he certainly didn't feel like pissing off Dipper today. 

"You're what?" Bill asked. His voice was a little too quiet, and he was almost certain that Dipper had caught it as well.

"I'm..." Dipper swallowed. His eyes kept flickering from Bill's face to the sand, then all over again. Bill let him have a moment to collect himself, and to collect his magic too. 

His hand he used to snap his fingers had started to twitch and eventually spaz out, and he was forced to bury it in the sand to keep it from shaking again. It helped very little, with the sand above his hand shaking and vibrating like some broken toy was underneath. His vision began to fade in and out, and he knew that he was done for. 

"Dipper-" he strained out. 

"I'm just worried about you, Bill," Dipper blurted out. It made Bill's mouth shut close in surprise. "Am...am I doing this right? Loving you? You're...you're so distant now and I talked to Mabel about it and...and she told me that her past boyfriends used to do the same with her. In love at first, then they'd slowly get bored of her. I- I know that's almost impossible with you, Bill, because you literally changed everything about yourself for me, but I can't...you know?" He let out a forced laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. "If you ever feel like you're just pushing yourself, just- just stop, okay? The last thing I want you to do is disappear for just being here for me."

Bill's eyelids hooded. His heart-rate slowed down instead of beating like a constant drum. Everything he had done, and would do now, it was all for him, and he wouldn't have changed it for the world. 

He scooted forward, shifting his legs underneath him so that he was supporting his weight on his knees. He took the back of Dipper's neck, bringing the boy forward so he could press his forehead against his. Dipper watched him through reluctant eyes, eyes that were filled of worry for the future. 

"Wanna play some Kan Jam?" Bill grinned. 

Snorting, Dipper pulled away from him. He took up some sand and covered Bill in it, much to the demon's delight. "I thought you were going to tell me something important!" he argued, the tips of his ears red with embarrassment. 

"I did!" Bill laughed. He pointed at the two black cans fifty feet away from them, empty and abandoned. "I haven't played that game since...I actually haven't played that game before. Heh," he admitted with sheepish smile. 

Dipper raised an eyebrow at him. "You haven't?" he asked with a hint of disbelief. "You're a dream demon who has lived on this earth for like, trillions of years, and you haven't even played Kan Jam?"

"Nope!" Bill chirped, standing up from the sand. He brushed off his knees, holding out a hand to Dipper. He gladly took it, almost bumping into Bill's chest as a result. 

They giggled at each other, walking down hand in hand to the cans like some cheesy puppy lovers. 

When they got there, Mabel and Soos were already there, Soos throwing the disc at Mabel with a grunt. Then Mabel jumped for it and slammed it down to the top, whooping and hollering with Soos and calling the two college boys they were playing against a "sore loser with no taste in music, you Panic! at the Disco haters!" 

Dipper shook his head, getting the last of his laughs out. His eyes were bright again, a small smile playing on his lips. "Mabel, can Bill and I have a turn?" he called out to his sister. 

"Nice pun, dude!" Soos called back out. 

"Oh, uh, I didn't mean to make it a-" Dipper explained, scratching his cheek. 

"Sure, after we beat the crap out of these MCR hater-taters!" Mabel whooped, once again scoring Soos and her some points. 

"I thought they hated that one guy band?" Soos frowned. 

"We hate both!" the two boys grumbled.

Mabel gave them her infamous death glare, causing the boys to wince back from how scary a nice optimistic girl like her can go from cuddly to murderer in zero point two seconds. 

Dipper shook his head, letting out a breath of slight irritation. He sat down on the white sand, crossing his legs and leaning back with his arms behind him. Following suit, Bill sat down beside him, putting his hands inside his lap like a kindergartner.

They watched Mabel and Soos, along with the apparent anti-band boys, play the game of Kan Jam. It was a little interesting, and he had to admit a little scary, watching Mabel look so competitive and burn out her victims like this. 

Whether that was her shouting, "THIS IS FOR SAYING MELANIE WAS BUCK-TOOTHED!" or literally slamming the disc into the can so hard it shook or hollering "HA! Did you have a fall out, boys?! Cause you kids aren't definitely alright!", Bill knew that she'd be a great murderer one day. They even won in less than three minutes. 

"TAKE THAT, ERIDAN AND SOLLUX!" Mabel whooped, high-fiving Soos. The two guys grumbled, admitting defeat. 

"Like yeah, what kind of names are those!" Soos hollered, taking a chug of his soda. 

"And what kind of name is Soos?" the posh one said with a wrinkle of his nose, crossing his arms over his chest. 

The other guy put a hand on his friend's shoulder. With a lisp, he said, "Oh don't worry E.D., they just won't admit that Fall Out Boy can't write songs for their life."

"NOW, YOU COME HERE YOU LITTLE GRAY GAY TROLL PIECE OF SH-!"

His hand twitched by his side, nearly shooting out in front of him like it had his own mind. But then he forced it down, breathing heavily. Underneath him, the sand had begun to smoke. Blue smoke. 

Oh no. 

"Pine Tree," he spoke, trying to keep his tone level. He turned his head over to Dipper, who looked at him with a small smile. 

"Hmm?"

"I uh-" He balled up his fists, keeping them in the sand to hold them back a little longer. "-I gotta use the washroom. I'll- I'll be-" _back,_ was what he almost said. Instead he said, "I'll try to meet you back here if I can." Because as much as he lied and stayed a con man, for the life of him, he couldn't bare to lie to his own lover.

"Oh," Dipper said, no sneaking suspicion in his voice. Just complete trust in Bill and that made it ten times as hard for Bill to walk away. "I'll see you in a bit then. Try not being eaten alive by seagulls on the way." Dipper chuckled at his own words. 

Trying to make it seem as if nothing was wrong, Bill laughed as well, but even to him it sounded a little forced. He stood up once more, but not before planting a long, dwindling kiss on Dipper's cheek. He forced himself to move his feet, to walk away from Dipper, who simply smiled at his show of affection and waved him goodbye. The brunet didn't know that wave of goodbye was the last goodbye he'd ever have to give.

Swallowing up his pride and sheer terror, Bill lifted his chin, and marched off. 

He didn't know where he was going. He honestly didn't. He just needed to get away from Dipper and from the noise and from everyone who could see him like this. And thanks to his screaming and buzzing mind, he ended up circling a bare spot in the beach, a spot where no one came to for superstitions of the residents.

He paced the sand, accidentally kicking some up as he sharply turned, walked, and repeated. His hands were twitching like crazy, the sand underneath him turning a smoky blue. His ankles were even starting to become translucent, but a few deep breaths let the color come back.

He wanted to leave. He knew that trying to stay for any longer, like he had done for the past five months, would just make everything that much harder for him to leave. He had to go, right now, or he would be a slave to this town forever. 

But for some God-awful reason, _why wasn't he disappearing?_

He let out a breathy growl of frustration, kicking up sand on purpose and pivoting around to face the ocean. It was calm today, the sun just barely touching the surface of the water. It cast a beautiful glow on the whole ocean, the reflection of the giant orb making it look that much bigger. And with the massive size and the beautiful setting, Bill was once again reminded of how small he was in this form, and how massive he could have gotten if he simply didn't fall in love with a human. 

Bill took a deep breath, then let it out through his mouth, slowly. He walked over to the water, his toes just barely touching the rising tide of the water and sand. He looked down and just, well, stared. 

Some people didn't know the beauty when they saw it, and Bill was glad he was the lucky few to see beauty for what it really was. 

He found a rock, a grey flat one that had no significance, whatsoever. But he still bent over, picking it up and rolling it in between his fingers lazily. 

Then without warning, he threw it from his side, letting the rock skip once, twice, then three times over the water.

He watched it plunge into the ocean, staring at the rippling spot for a good moment before looking back down at his feet, where a hundred more rocks like the one who threw stayed. He picked up a whole bunch in a fist, his fist for once holding still to allow him this one last moment by himself. He picked out the heavier rocks and the ones that were simply not good enough for rock skipping. 

He was left with five in the end. Taking a deep breath, he threw the first one. 

Did the world hate him this much to make him leave so suddenly, when he had promised that he would stay for at least more than a couple lifetimes? 

Three skips. Not good enough. He threw the other, harder, faster, _angrier._

Perhaps he was the problem. No demon could be beat by himself so suddenly, except for the weakest. He was the complete and disappointing problem and he hated it. 

Four skips. Better, but he needed more. He rolled up the other one.

He was disappearing, and he didn't even tell Dipper. He couldn't. 

Five, _six_ skips. 

He was such a coward that he couldn't even _think_ of hearing Dipper cry over him, or see him look so heartbroken over a promise he wouldn't keep for much longer. 

Six skips. He let out an inhumane snarl, eyes turning red in demonic anger. 

A beach, the perfect place to tell someone you loved that you had to leave forever and there was no turning back. Nah, who was he kidding? Smiling kids, the laughter from everyone around them, teenagers blasting out their favorite music, kicking down sandcastles and rebuilding them, playing with strangers and not even questioning it because the beach was a place for happiness. A place for memories, and now he was going to be just that- a memory. 

Eight. Not. Enough. 

He should have told Dipper that he loved him more than all the beaches in the world. He should have told Dipper that he would have replaced all the oceans in the world with things Dipper liked just so the boy could smile. But now he would never, _ever_ see that smile again and it was all his _fault._

When he ran out of rocks to throw in his hand, he let out a scream of frustration, kneeling down and picking up a hand-sized rock, reeling back and throwing it so far that it left his line of vision, still sailing down the ocean. 

He breathed heavily, feeling his anger flare up so badly that the water curling at his feet was bubbling with his anger. And the water let him hide his disappearing ankles, his feet just gone and left with nothing. He almost barked out an ironic laugh. Be careful what you wish for, was what he always said to people he made deals to. And now he was the subject to that. 

For the hell of it, and because he just could with no consequences anymore, he picked up the nearest boulder with his telekinesis, one that was bigger than his body, and moved it in front of him, letting it float over the water and block his view of the sparkling water. 

Then he hesitated, wondering if he could reverse the effects for just one more day. Just one more day with Dipper, that's all he wanted, all he asked, and maybe...

Shaking his head, his temples feeling like they were being squeezed together, Bill threw the rock away as far as he could, breathing laboring and his sides feeling like they were set on fire. Sure, he liked the pain, loved it sometimes even, but it wasn't funny anymore. 

A pair of arms wrapped themselves around his waist, squeezing him close to a warm body. And Bill's worries washed away. 

Dipper laughed softly behind him, his melodic laugh echoing in Bill's ears. The demon shivered, vulnerable to Dipper's touch. 

And as if the brunet knew this, he kissed the demon's cheek, then nuzzled his nose in the demon's shoulder and neck comfortably, breathing him in almost greedily. Bill closed his eyes, loving the way how Dipper felt against him, and wished he'd remember the feeling forever. It was the only feeling he'd ever need and want for the rest of his life. 

"You were gone in the bathroom for a very long time," Dipper muttered against his back.

"I got lost," Bill lied through his teeth. 

"For a demon with all-knowing powers, you're extremely dorky," Dipper laughed. 

"But I know how to pleasure you, so that's all that matters," Bill purred. He put his hands over Dipper's on his chest, squeezing Dipper's clasped hands in a way of reassurance, despite his flirty words. 

Again, Dipper didn't make a snappy comeback. Instead, the human hummed in content, swaying them from side to side like how a mother would rock a baby to calm them down. And like the baby, Bill could feel himself slowly and steadily become more and more relaxed. 

"The water looks like mercury like this," Dipper murmured quietly in his ear. 

"Mm," Bill hummed, letting Dipper sway him more. "If you want, I could change all the water in the world to mercury if it makes you smile." And it wasn't even a lie.

Dipper laughed a breathy laugh in his ear, making the demon shudder more. He hoped Dipper didn't notice the effect the boy had on him, and kept a straight face. 

"Why would we need mercury for?" Dipper snorted. 

"Easy," Bill grinned. He craned his neck, planting a big kiss on Dipper's forehead warmly. "So it could be easier to find Uranus!"

Dipper snickered, pulling away from Bill's warm bare back to push him into the water. Sadly, Bill didn't fall in, causing the demon to grin in victory and turn around to face the traitor. He hugged Dipper by the waist (he let out a yelp of surprise), and picked him up, dragging them farther into the ocean. 

Together, they got splattered with a high tide, Bill's arms still protectively around Dipper to keep him in place as the water splashed their whole bodies. They laughed, sputtering out water and stayed kneeling in the ocean. It was freezing, but Bill felt warm pressed against Dipper's body. 

Then again, they dragged each other out of the water like barely alive survivors, dragging their bodies to the surface sputtering but laughing. 

Dipper turned on his back, arms spread out and hair out of his face messily. He kept laughing, his chest heaving up and down in exhaustion. Bill copied him, but had his head tilted to his Pine Tree, watching silently as Dipper smiled and laughed. 

He didn't even feel Dipper reach out for him, entwining their hands together. Bill's cold body suddenly felt warm, inside and out. 

Dipper turned his head to him, a smile on his lips. "You're the best thing that has ever happened to me, you know that, right?" he said. His tone was genuine. Sweet, and loving even. 

Bill could feel his own throat closing up, his heart skipping too many beats to be heavily. Heart pummeling to his stomach, he sat up, supporting himself with his arms braced behind him. He forced himself not to look at Dipper. 

He ran his hands through his hair, hearing Dipper get up from the sand himself to sit up next to Bill. He crossed his legs, turning his body to face him. His smile was gone, replaced by a small down tug of the lips. His eyes were heavy with concern.

Letting out a disgruntled sigh through the mouth, Bill got up, not wanting to be this close to Dipper than he already did. Part of him was extremely glad that Dipper had come to find him, and the other was frustrated. He came here to get away from him, of all people, but Dipper was too stubborn for things like that. 

And his stubbornness showed more as Dipper stood up, brows pulled together in concern. With the way Bill was acting, there was no doubt that he was hiding something and Dipper was determined to find out what it was. 

Before Bill could walk away without a word to his lover, Dipper stepped to his view, taking his face in his hands and pulling them a little closer. He looked into Bill's face, his mouth slightly opened as he inspected Bill's face. There was no doubt that Bill was showing extreme fear and depression in his eyes and look. 

Dipper ran his thumb over Bill's slight frown, a small frown of his own tugging at his lips. 

 _"What's wrong?"_ Dipper whispered. The pure and downright worry and love in his Dipper's voice broke him, freezing him in the spot completely. 

It took him a full minute to gather himself, to be able to breathe fine again. 

And when he did, he wrapped his arms around Dipper's waist, pulling him close and crashing his lips against Dipper's. It was a lingering kiss, a kiss of goodbye that one of them was not aware of. And it broke him so much knowing that Dipper would regret every single kiss, every single moment with him, after he told Dipper was was going to happen once the sun disappeared. 

Dipper pulled him away, not laughing, but frowning. Dipper Pines wasn't stupid, and he knew when someone was holding something back. For once, Bill hated that attribute to him. 

"Dipper," Bill said, a begging tone coming with his voice. "I'm begging you right now, kid, to- to just punch me in the face and just call me a goddamn liar right now before I go insane. I- I can't keep living like this, Dipper. More than anything, I want to be able to go to this beach again with you, but I can't, I can't, _I can't_."

Dipper's frown deepened. "Bill, just spit it out," he said in a soft voice. He looked like he wanted to reach out for the demon, but thought better of it. If Dipper touched him, Bill didn't know what he'd do first- burst out crying, screaming, or burst into flames. Maybe all three at the same time.

"Dipper," Bill strained. His voice was becoming hysterical and hoarse. "It's happening."

And like something snapped, Dipper's face blanked. 

And then it pulled back in confusion. He didn't know. He thought Bill was just...

"You told me not worry," Dipper said. His brow furrowed. "You...you told me that this would happen one day, but you told me to stop being so worried, like I usually am. And I still believe you. Bill, didn't you say that you'd be with me for a couple lifetimes and more?" 

Bill stayed quiet. How could he speak, when the boy he loved still thought they had days, weeks, _years?_

"How long?" he said, his voice just barely above a whisper. His eyes were trained on Bill, staying on him and assessing him like he was looking for some sign. A sign that would betray him. So Bill forced his face to stay passive. It was hard, especially when he felt like breaking down in Dipper's arms. 

"How long do you have? One millennia?" 

Bill didn't respond. 

"One...one thousand years?" 

When Bill didn't respond to that, Dipper blinked, swallowing visibly. Bill's heart sank to his stomach seeing his lover look so distressed. 

"One hundred?" No answer.

"Fifty years? Ten?" Dipper called out desperately. Bill laughed, in his head. Humans. Always so hopeful that the worst would never come, when it always was the first option. 

"Bill," Dipper begged. His voice shook, keeping a shakiness that Bill hadn't heard ever since...God. _When_ was the last time he heard Dipper sound so...so _vulnerable?_

"Bill, how long? _How long_?" He sounded hysterical, distraught,  _delirious._ Like the very thought of Bill leaving him was the one thing that would officially break him and it took everything Bill had not to burst out crying like the weak monster he was. 

"Bill," Dipper choked out. "Answer me. _Please._ " 

And once more, Bill did not answer. Or better yet, he could not. His own throat felt closed up, choking him in a wallow of guilt and sadness. "D- didn't you tell me we were gonna be together forever? Y- you promised me," Dipper whispered. "Forever and always, remember? Bill, _please._ How long?"

"My love, there is no such thing as forever." His words sounded stiff, strong, like it didn't break him inside saying it. 

To his words, Dipper's face just... _fell._ It fell, along with Bill's heart. On impulse, Bill took his hand, pressing Dipper's knuckles to his lips to place a chaste kiss, lips brushing against skin delicately. "The thing I love about you humans is that you think forever exists, when your average lifetime is less than a hundred years. That's less than a generation, Dipper," Bill continued, eyes narrowed to the ground. He wouldn't meet Dipper's eyes, _couldn't._ Seeing his lover's face alone would be the last tap that would shatter his whole being. He closed his eyes.

"I simply told you that I would make our love seem like forever, not literally," Bill murmured.

Then he looked up at Dipper, whose eyes glowed beautifully, like the stars in the sky. And his own very words felt numb to his ears.

"It's today, Dipper."

And Dipper just...well, _snapped._

He shook his head, pulling away from Bill and giving him the most grief-stricken look Bill had ever seen on a face. He looked so lost, like he no longer had a purpose, like he was stranded in the middle of a sea with no one to depend on. There were no tears, just a look of sorrow and disbelief. 

"And you didn't _tell_ me?" Dipper said, voice low and filled with horror. "You didn't tell me and just- just thought you'd disappear without saying goodbye?" The trace of betrayal was evident in both his words and his face. 

"Dipper, I couldn't watch you just-" Bill begged. 

"You should have told me!" Dipper shouted, eyes rabid with craziness. He stayed stuck in place, arms limp by his side. "I- I could have helped you. We could have figured this out together, we could have-!" 

"There is no _cure,_ Dipper," Bill snapped. "Aren't you even listening to me? I should have disappeared years ago, when your Grunkle vanished me into nothing but a statue. But your greed and mine got the best of us and now I have to _go._ I can't stop this, and you can't too. Just let me do this one thing for you and I'll leave you alone!" His voice was slowly rising into a shout.

"I don't want to be left alone!" Dipper shouted back. Tears prickled at the corners of his eyes. "I don't, Bill, I don't! I loved you, more than any- anything you could have offered me. I just want to be with _you._ And only you." His voice shook along with his body. His next words made Bill swallow the abnormally large lump in his throat. 

"Let me go with you."

"Dipper-" Bill murmured.

"Please," Dipper begged. He stepped forward. "Let- let me disappear with you. I don't know what the hell would happen, I don't even know what would happen to me, but I want to be with you." His eyes lowered. "Forever and always, like you promised me," he whispered. 

"Dipper, please don't do this to yourself," Bill pleaded, stepping forward to envelop Dipper in a warm embrace. He could feel his lover shake against him, his wet cold body shivering and shuddering. From the cold or the news, he couldn't tell which. 

He stepped away, just a little bit, just so he could see Dipper's face and tilt it up to his face. There were warm tears trailing down Dipper's face, looking like a mess for the life of him. "You have a family. You have your life. I can't let you just-"

"I can and I will." Bill was startled by the firmness and promise in the human's voice, despite Dipper looking like he just sat through five sob stories in one go. 

"Dipper-"

"Don't," Dipper clipped. He put his hands on Bill's chest, then to his shoulders. He pulled Bill close, surprising the demon with a kiss. As a distraction, as a one-timer thing, again Bill could not tell. 

And when he pulled away, there was a trace of fire in Dipper's eyes, a complete burning hellfire that Bill knew he couldn't escape. 

"Let me disappear with you," Dipper begged. "Then we can go to every beach you could dream of."

Bill's arms tightened around his lover. Next to them, their shadows were beginning to lower. He was running out of time. _They_ were running out of time. 

"Mabel. Your Grunkles. Your pa-" Bill whispered. 

"They don't matter," Dipper told him quietly. His eyes stayed on Bill's face, not once leaving his face, despite the sun dragging itself down like a time bomb. "They'll understand. I can live with them with any other single lifetime but only once can I be with _you,_ Bill. Please, just let me do this."

"You're a selfless man, Dipper Pines. Your family will spend years looking for you, heartbroken and-" Bill protested.

Dipper cut him off with a chaste kiss to the lips. The sun was three fourths setting. 

Bill didn't even realize that Dipper had dropped his phone to the ground. "There's a note on my phone explaining everything that's going to happen and why I'm gone," Dipper explained, eyes still set on Bill's face. The trace of unconditional love in the human's eyes made the demon's heart feel real. "I wrote it when you told me about this two years ago."

Bill let out a small laugh. "You planned this," Bill stated. "You planned this all along, didn't you?"

Dipper bit down on his lower lip, giving Bill a half shrug with his hands still on Bill's shoulders. "I never thought it would be this soon, but..." he trailed off. 

The demon dipped his head, planting a long kiss on Dipper's lips. The human kissed back with the same fiery passion, their hearts driving them to stay like this, to stay in love and stay with each other. 

"Every single beach," Bill breathed against his ear. He swayed them from side to side comfortingly as the sun began to fully set. "Every single beach, I promise you. We'll go to every single one. And everyday will be a day at the beach."

"A day at the beach," Dipper echoed, smiling softly at him. He pressed his forehead against Bill's, as the demon's eyes closed in content. "I'd like that," he admitted quietly. 

As the sun fully set, their bodies disappeared into nothing. But their hearts became everything. 


	2. I Keep Hoping We'll Eat Cake by the Ocean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper wants some ice cream. Bill wants some ice cream. Everyone wants some ice cream! But, Bill really wants Dipper for dessert the most.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS ONE IS TERRIBLE AND TRASHY BECAUSE A FRIEND AND I WROTE IT TOGETHER IN THE SPAN OF TWENTY MINUTES BEFORE ANY OF THE DRUNK UNCLES DOWNSTAIRS COULD CATCH US, I AM SO SORRY IT'S SHORT AND IT'S T R A S H. And yes, I know the chapter titles are song lyrics. Don't- don't look at me like that. 
> 
> I'll make it up by making as many fandom references I can lol. If anyone can count how many I've done, bless you and I'll give you a cookie and a hug.
> 
> (This is basically a crack fic in a way, I'm crying)

"It feels like hell in here," Bill panted. 

"I feel like you know what hell feels like because you were there," Dipper answered wryly, fanning his face with a folded newspaper, even as the fan blasted air into his face on full blast. 

"Well of course I know what it feels like, I sat on the throne!" Bill complained, throwing his head against the sweaty pillow. He was shirtless with only shorts to cover his body, but even then Dipper could tell that his body was slick with sweat. 

"Why did Shooting Star had to leave us alone in the Shack?" Bill said again, turning on one side. "Did she already forget what happened _last_ time we were left here alone?"

"You burnt down half the house, you threw Waddles in the lake, and Grunkle Stan had a heat stroke," Dipper deadpanned. He craned his neck to look at him. "I'm pretty sure she remembers."

"Some people just like watching the world burn, don't they?" Bill grunted. 

Biting his tongue to hold back a snort or a retort, Dipper sat up, his back against the wall. He had a feeling that his back was going to get stuck against the wall like last time, but by this point, he really didn't care. It seemed like the summer didn't even care either. It was the hottest day in Gravity Falls and he was _dying._

Meanwhile, Bill was on the couch, another fan blasting his face with hot air as he hummed 'In The Summertime' under his breath like the dork he was. 

Dipper heaved a pant, dragging his fingers through his messy greasy hair. He felt like he was sweating up a river, and summer had just barely started. Christ, he was seriously going to die this year. Even though uh, he felt like that every single year. 

"Pine Tree, I want to do something outside!" Bill whined, abruptly stopping his humming of that stupid song. His hands folded themselves over his stomach, his chest heaving up and down like he was a fish out of water. Dipper would have felt bad, if it wasn't for the fact that heh, he really liked seeing Bill shirtless.

Don't tell anyone he thought that. It was like thinking about Levi shirtless. 

No wait that was actually-

"Then do something, no one's stopping you," Dipper said, his tone dry of emotion. Bill somehow always found ways to do something as simple as walking outside wrong. "You're being a little high strung, Bill."

Bill grinned up at the ceiling, not even bothering to look at Dipper as he answered, "Or you could say that I was being a little... _Loki._ "

"Hey, shut up!" Dipper groaned, throwing a pillow at Bill's face. 

The demon just laughed, throwing the pillow back at Dipper with twice amount the strength Dipper had thrown at him. Usually, after that, they would fight like it was the Battle of Hoth all over again, not giving up until the other did. But Dipper felt too hot to even _try_ and lift up another pillow without groaning from the laziness. 

"What, too lazy now?" Bill chuckled. 

"Yes, now let me be lazy in peace," Dipper snapped. He closed his eyes and snuggled against the wall for effect, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Well, then that means you wouldn't mind hearing any of my jokes!" 

"Bill, oh my God, no-"

"What do you call a dauntless baker?" Bill asked with a grin. Before Dipper could even open his mouth to call him stupid, Bill answered, "A whisk-taker! HA! Get it?! Hahahaha!"

"I'm surrounded by idiots," Dipper grumbled, massaging his temple with a hand. He cracked open his eyes, groaning when he saw Bill leaning down on his couch to look at him, his eyes sparkling with something Mabel called his 'pun twinkle'. Whatever that meant, at least. 

"There's only one idiot here!" Bill chirped. 

"Are you calling yourself an idiot?"

"Nope, I'm saying you're the idiot!"

"I-" Dipper took a deep breath, slapping his sweaty face and dragging his hand down the side of it. He sighed, giving Bill an unimpressed look while the demon looked at him expectantly. "You know what? Forget it? I'm gonna take a shower."

"Oooh, so that's why you said idiots!" Bill drawled out, snapping his fingers like he found the mystery of the goddamn lion in Steven Universe because Dipper has been trying and trying to find out who it was and-

"Your little friend included! Don't worry I could help with that!"

Dipper's face flared up in embarrassment, giving Bill a dirty look. "I'm just gonna-" Dipper said slowly, standing up from his spot on the floor. Just as suspected, his back stuck to the wall, ripping out of there ever so slowly. 

But before he could walk into his bathroom, fingers grasped at his forearms and reeled him in.

Dipper yelped, feeling his butt plop down on Bill's lap. Then arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him down on the couch to lie down with a body right under him. "BILL, WHAT THE HE-!"

The demon simply laughed, holding onto him tighter with his nose burying in Dipper's shoulder snugly. If Dipper hadn't gone to Purgatory with Dean Winchester yet, he might as well had right then and there. "Bill, let me go, what the fu-?!"

"Ice cream," the demon replied simply. "Let's go get some ice cream."

"You're a hyperactive kindergartner sometimes, you know that?" Dipper grumbled, struggling against Bill's sweaty and sticky arms. Now he was twice as gross as he was before. 

Bill laughed again, burying his nose deeper into Dipper's shoulder. "Sorry, it's just the weather," he explained. "When I got too hot, my adrenaline levels kick in."

"So you're always hyper by that sense then?" Dipper grunted. 

Bill squeezed him. "On another day, I would have cried tears of joy for you calling me hot for the first time since I started courting you, but ice cream comes first!"

"Meet Bill Cipher, the guy who prioritizes ice cream before being called hot by their boyfriend," Dipper said wryly. He kicked his feet, just one last attempt to move, but Bill kept him close. He wondered if it was worth it to punch Bill in the face just this once, so he could _finally_ get out of here and-

"Pine Tree, if you keep struggling and you don't come and get ice cream with me, I'm going to hit you with a gun. Not shoot you, but hit you, because I love you," Bill barked. 

 "Guns don't kill people, we are all immune to bullets and it's a miracle." Dipper rolled his eyes. 

To his surprise, the demon stayed quiet. There was a long pause in the room before Bill chuckled, kissing his neck and saying, "I really need you to stop listening to that podcast thing. It's rotting your brain."

"True, for once," Dipper shrugged. "Like, do I trust everyone or trust no one? Like jeez!"

"Ice cream?" Bill asked hopefully, ignoring his ramble. 

Dipper grunted. Then he slumped against Bill's chest, huffing. "Just because you asked."

Bill kissed his cheek. But Dipper turned his head at the right moment to capture his lips. 

"Gross," Bill laughed. 

Dipper headbutted him, causing the both of them to tumble off the couch when Bill tried to dodge him. "AH, SUGAR HONEY ICED T-!" Bill screamed, eyes wide.

* * *

"And then I'll take the mango, then the rocky road, then the cotton candy -yeah, yeah in that order- and some- ooo, is that rainbow sprinkles?! Give me some, I'm gay as fuck, and-" Bill rambled on. 

Licking his ice cream, Dipper watched him, blinking slowly as the employees behind the counter rushed to get his order right. Usually, with a big order like that, they'd laugh at him and wave him away. But hey, who'd turn down a whole block of gold? When Dipper questioned this, Bill simply said, "I found it up Chara and Flowey's butts. If they had one, that is."

"Aaaand finally, I want some butterscotch!" Bill stated proudly. 

Tiredly, an arm reached out and gave Bill a whole seven-stacker of ice cream shakily, bidding him goodbye as Bill handed him the gold bar and happily took the ice cream with a grin. The demon bounced over to Dipper, already licking the middle of it with ice cream dripping down his chin. 

"You're the worst," Dipper said bluntly. 

"And you're worst than Joffrey, which basically makes the worst," Bill hummed, bopping Dipper's nose with a finger. Dipper wrinkled his nose, wiping his nose with an arm. 

"There's ice cream on your fingers," Dipper complained. But while he complained, he walked hand in hand with Bill down the boardwalk, back to their cars for the safety of air-conditioning. Bill hummed out a quick "Ice cream wouldn't be the only thing on my fingers later," before pulling Dipper closer to his side. He felt bad for the people who had to clean up the streets, as Bill's gigantic monster ice cream was dripping all over the place. He was glad that they were using Bill's 1967 Chevy Impala, or else he would have slapped the ice cream out of his boyfriend's hand by now. 

When they finally got to Bill's old school car, Bill let go of Dipper's hand, just to open the passenger seat and usher him in, before jogging to the other side of the car to get in himself. Dipper suppressed rolling his eyes, taking a spare napkin from the dashboard to capture the little droplets of ice cream from his cone like the civilized human being he was, sticking his tongue out while he cleaned up his fingers. 

 _"In the summertime, when the weather is hot,"_ Bill sang, bobbing his head to side to side like a little kid. 

"You sing another verse of that song and I swear to God I'm going to drop you faster than Percy and Annabeth did when they fell to he-" 

" _You can stretch right up and touch the sky_ ," Bill sang again.

"You are easily the most annoying person I have met."

"But you love meh," Bill teased, leaning in close to Dipper while he batted his eyelashes. Dipper wrinkled his nose, narrowing his eyes at him. 

Bill huffed, taking one lick of his ice cream and slumping against the leather seat as the AC blasted cool air into his face. "Wow, way to go, Dipper. You hurt my feelings."

"I didn't even know you _had_ feelings."

"Oi, shut up."

Dipper snorted out a laugh, taking another lick of his ice cream. He was almost down to the cone, with Bill surprisingly on the last three scoops, eating his ice cream faster than any normal human being could. He could tell that the demon was having a brain freeze, with the way he was squinting at his ice cream and puckering his lips and pausing once in a while. Of course, Bill had weird ways of having fun, and decided to leave him alone to eating his ice cream. 

When Dipper finally finished his ice cream, with only the cone left to eat, he blurted out, "You know, you should really ask the cashier for what ingredient they put in here. It's good."

"Oh!" Bill lit up at Dipper's request, turning his body to look at him. Dipper looked down at his ice cream, and saw that the demon was up to his last scoop, unsurprisingly now. "I know what they put in there, Pine Tree, I know, I know!" He began bouncing in his seat, shaking the car a little. 

"What, what,  _what_?" Dipper asked, clearly annoyed by Bill's hyper-activeness. If this was how Bill was going to act for the rest of the summer, he was truly afraid of life. And of course, putting a ladybug and black cat next to Mabel because jeez, no one had ever screamed "WHERE'S THE AKUMA!" louder than-

"It's made of big-" Bill purred, leaning in. 

"Juicy-" He leaned in closer, his nose barely brushing against Dipper's. 

"Absolutely tasty-" His breath tickled Dipper's face. Dipper kept frozen to the spot. 

"Love!" Bill exclaimed, leaning away and coming up with a plate of cupcakes. "Want some?"

"How- how did you get cupcakes?" Dipper asked in confusion, eyes glancing down to the freshly baked goods. It smelled good from here too, and Dipper wondered if Bill somehow knew he was craving for some. It didn't help he read the feast part of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and-

"I found theeem," Bill sang out, taking one and munching on it. 

"Uh-" Dipper said, eyebrows raising up. He leaned over, looking around. Then he looked back up at Bill, eyebrow still raised up in question. "Where the hell did your ice cream go? It was like...two feet tall...?" It came out as a question. 

"Galileo Galileo, Galileo Galileo, Galileo Figaro!" Bill said in a deep voice. 

"Wha-?"

"Someone threw a cat down the roof," Bill explained. The cupcakes disappeared into thin air. 

"Bill, what in the actual hell is-" Dipper said, exasperated. 

"The Winchesters," Bill chirped. "Now can I have a kiss?" He opened up his arms for the invitation. 

Now, the thing about having a demon boyfriend was both the weirdest thing and greatest. For one, is that they can get you puppies that can shoot lasers out of their eyes and get you a butterfly looking stick thing (which Dipper still didn't know the purpose to), or they could turn your room into a giant black hole of nothingness like the assholes they were. And other times, having a demon boyfriend was just basically the weirdest, most random experience of the entire world. Like right now, for example.

"If Dualscar drove a car, he'd be Fuelscar. If Dualscar was more of a dick than he already was, he'd be Cruelscar. If Dualscar loved Christmas, he'd be Yulescar. If Dualscar got hit over the head with a bat he'd be Droolscar. If-" Bill blurted, counting off his names off his fingertips. 

"Dude, shut the hell up."

"-If Dualscar told a really good joke he'd be alive."

"DUDE, TOO FAR, WHAT THE FU-"

Bill laughed at his discomfort, pulling Dipper to his lap. He pushed Dipper's hair back, a smile light on his lips as his shoulders shook from laughter. "Your hair looks sexy pushed back."

"My name isn't Aaron, now shut the fuck up," Dipper huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. But he made no move to move out of Bill's lap. 

The demon clearly noticed this, as his smile just widened, his arms slithering around his usual spot around Dipper's waist. "Can I have dessert now?" he whined. 

Dipper frowned at him, arms uncrossing so he could drape them on Bill's shoulders. "What?"

"I want dessert," Bill said stubbornly. 

"You  _just_ had ice cream, you big baby," Dipper laughed. 

"Yeah, but I want  _you_ for dessert," Bill whined. He seriously sounded like a four year old. 

Bill then looked up at him, a wacky grin on his face. It reminded Dipper of a psychopath, with his wide eyes and mischievous smile. Sadly, he was too used to it by now to be even mildly scared. Hell, Dipper watched his own hand reach up and brush Bill's hair away from his forehead without even having control, watching his boyfriend's lips quirk up at his sign of affection. 

"I'll pay!" Bill negotiated. 

Dipper laughed instead, his other hand reaching out to cup his face. He tilted Bill's face up so he could have a better look, just before he leaned down and gave Bill a quick peck on the lips. 

"Fine," Dipper grumbled. "Then we're going home."

"Mmhm," Bill hummed, pushed the back of Dipper's head down to his face gently, crashing their lips together. They molded perfectly against each other, the summer heat no longer the problem in this situation. Dipper nipped his lover's bottom lip, making Bill hum in content for his boldness, holding him tighter. 

Pulling back with a soft smack, Dipper looked at him with a faint smile. Maybe going out for ice cream wasn't so bad. "You know, what surprises the most here is that you haven't made one sexual innuendo."

Bill thought about this for a while. "You're right," he blinked. "Whoa, new record! Nice!"

Dipper laughed, about to bring their lips back together before one of Bill's hands left his waist, rolling down the window next to them.

"OH _DIPPER_ , YOU HAVE SUCH A BIG DIPPER~!" Bill moaned as loudly as he can.

_"BILL!"_

"Hey, you're not denying it, I'm not denying it, no one isn't!" Bill argued. Outside, a group of teenagers burst out laughing. 

"But anyway, how about you see  _my_ Big Dipper?" Bill waggled his eyebrows. 

Dipper slapped him. "YOU GO, GLEN COCO!" was shouted from one of the teenagers. 

"Ow," Bill pouted, rubbing his cheek. "Damn, I should have said I fucked the Little Dipper then."

"You did not," Dipper clarified. "You fucked the Big Dipper and that's final."

Bill stared at him. Then shrugged. He pecked Dipper's lips for a chaste kiss before sticking his head out of the window at the giggling teenagers. The teenagers kept giggling, and laughed even louder when they saw Bill poking his head out and looking at them. The demon took a deep breath, inhaling them and shouting at the top of his lungs for everyone to hear. 

"HEY YOU GUYS, I FUCKED THE LITTLE DIPPER, AND HE FUCKED THE BIG DIP-!" 

"YOU DIDN'T EVEN  _BOTTOM_ ME!"

"Dipper, give me your popsicle right now and let me show you how far I can go with this shit."

"But I don't have a...oh."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YES I KNOW THE ENDING WAS SIMILAR TO MY OTHER STORY, BUT TWO PEOPLE I KNEW JUST YELLED THAT DOWNSTAIRS BECAUSE WE'RE STARGAZING AND I JUST DIED LAUGHING BECAUSE THESE GUYS WERE STRAIGHT, NOW APPARENTLY THEY CAME OUT BY BLURTING OUT THEIR SEXUAL EXPERIENCES AND I'M DYING, SOMEONE HELP ME OFF THE FLOOR.


	3. Why Did You Steal My Cotton Candy Heart?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper feels like roller coasters can make him scream louder than Bill ever could. Bill objects. With a surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is literally a sorry excuse to write jealous beaus and rings again. But hey, this time somebody asked for Bill proposing with a ring, not me myself, for once. 
> 
> (I think the ring thing is a problem with me, omg)

Bill's tower collapsed for the third time in the row. 

"Ugh." He wrinkled his nose in distaste. Slamming his fist on the table, he began cleaning up the tower blocks for another round. "Dipper, your Jenga blocks are broken." 

"That, or you're just really bad at everything," Dipper answered wryly. He flipped another page of his book without even looking up. 

"Well, definitely at not making you scream."

Dipper glanced up at him, one eyebrow quirked in question. "I'm going to pretend that you weren't being sexual for once." Then he was back to reading his book. 

"Hey, it can mean both!" Bill argued. Then he thought for a while, piling up the blocks in the middle of the coffee table. "But, I mean, it pretty much means _that_ the most, but whatever makes you happy, Pine Tree," Bill chirped. 

Dipper wrinkled his nose, eyes still going back and forth on the pages of his book. "Are you seriously going to keep playing that game by yourself like the lonely person you are or do something productive with your life?"

Bill gasped dramatically, giving Pine Tree a dirty look. "Dipper!" he scolded. "As you should know, I have done _many_ productive things in my lifetime! Trying to take over the world, seducing you with my good looks-" Dipper snorted, "-working at that stupid Shack of yours, and more! Jeez, and I thought you were supposed to be smart."

Then the dream demon stuck out his tongue to the side, tapping his chin in thought. "Also, I don't think I classify as a real person. But my big Dipper is certainly real~"

"Little Dipper," the brunet corrected with a deadpanned look. He flipped the next page. "You have a little Dipper and now you have the right to shut the fuck up."

"Language!" Bill gasped. 

"English," Dipper said bluntly. 

Bill grunted, leaning back against the couch behind him as he looked at the mess of blocks in front of him. "You don't have to be so rude, you know. I'm just a demon with nothing to do and is left alone _again_ with a human who doesn't respect him."

"I do so," Dipper clarified. "I just respect cow dung more than I respect you."

"Rude." Bill threw a block at his stomach. 

"Just do something for today by yourself and leave me in peace, damn!" Dipper said in exasperation, brushing the wooden block off his stomach. He closed his book angrily, sitting up on the couch and giving Bill a pissed off look that made the demon grin. "We're only two weeks into summer and you're already three times more annoying than you were in the beginning!"

"But there's nothing to _do,_ " Bill complained, his back sliding down the couch ever so slowly. He sunk to the floor as a result. 

"Then _find_ something to do by yourself and-!"

The doorbell rang. 

Looking at each other, Bill stood up in an instant and gave his Pine Tree a pointed look. "I _found_ something to do, but it's not by myself, so you're doing it with me!" Bill chirped, speeding to the doorway before Dipper could question him. 

"Delivery for Bill Ci-" the mailman spoke, a large brown letter in his hand. 

Bill snatched it from his hand, pivoting around and singing, "Thanks, goodbye, your zipper is down, your hair should be parted on the other side, nice biceps, byeeeee!" and slammed the door with his heel. He pranced, _literally_ pranced into the living room in his excitement, slamming the letter down on the coffee table in front of a curious Dipper. 

"Ha! I knew it would arrive soon! Aren't I the best," he drawled with a chuckle, sitting down cross-legged on the carpet facing Dipper. But Dipper looked at him with a glare, much to his surprise. 

"What? You said find something to do and I did! Look!" he complained, holding up the letter and flapping it around. Why is it that everything he did was wrong in Dipper's eyes? Jeez. 

"Were you _flirting_ with the mailman?" Dipper asked him, an edge of jealousy to his tone. Well, okay, maybe a lot of jealousy in his tone. Probably more jealousy than Japan has. Wait, did that even make sense? Meh. 

Anyway, back to his jealous boyfriend. 

"Awww, is Pine Tree jealous?" Bill teased, setting the letter down on the table and giving Dipper a cruel smile that he only wore during special occasions. 

"Wha- no!" Dipper's face flared up with red, leaning back in complete disbelief to Bill's words. "I was just observing what you were doing and I just didn't like it!"

"Which is the same thing as being jealous, my love," Bill purred. He gave Dipper a blatant look. "You're being extremely cute right now and it's frustrating me."

"Fru-? Bill, you just flirted with someone! How is that frustrating _you_?" Dipper sputtered in disbelief. 

"Because you think I'd ever look at someone like I look at you, yeesh!" Bill said with a roll of his eyes. "Hey, I may be an intergalactic demon who can literally disintegrate you on the spot if you as much look at me wrong-" Dipper snorted, once again, "-but jeez, I won't ever cheat on you, Pine Tree. You know I love you."

"But you can always love someone else," Dipper muttered, turning his gaze away from Bill with a flush on his cheeks. "You've probably lived through more greater lovers in your lifetime."

Bill suppressed a smile. He always wanted to tell Dipper everything about his past lovers before, but never really had the right feeling to. Plus, telling Dipper that all his past companions were different incarnations of himself would put everything in limbo. And every incarnation was someone he had loved to no end.

Which was why his proposal to keep Dipper forever sat in his back pocket. Waiting. 

"Did anyone ever tell you that you look absolutely adorable when you're jealous, Pine Tree?" Bill drawled, propping his chin on a hand. He wasn't in any way lying. He inclined his head to the side. "And hey, don't be jealous. It's cute when you're jealous but it makes you think I'm not being loyal to you. You belong to me. I belong to you. No one can have you and no one can have me. Don't even try and think otherwise because I am _desperately_ in love with you, Dipper Pines." And really, if someone told him that he lied with even just a single word, Bill would send them to a cow dung dimension for eternity. 

Dipper's face turned a brighter shade, if that was possible. He coughed into a hand, looking hopelessly flustered. It made Bill smile. "I- I'm not- you're- I- just open the letter already so I could read in peace!" Dipper said in exasperation.

Bill breathed out a laugh. He palmed the letter, sliding it to his chest and pulling it up, using a nail to cut along the edge, excruciatingly slow. He looked up at Dipper as he did so, a happy smile on his face that somehow made Dipper embarrassed enough to turn away. "Well, here's the problem, Pine Tree!" Bill chirped, still ripping the letter ever so slowly. He could tell that Dipper was growing more and more anxious as time went on. "You can't read in peace when I open this letter, unless you can relax in a cart full of screaming adults!" 

"What?"

"We're going to the amusement park!" Bill answered, holding up two tickets in the air like it was an award. In a way, it kind of was. 

"Wonderful," Dipper said sarcastically. He opened up his book, slumping against the couch. "Go to the store really quick and claim whatever cereal prize you won. And no, I still don't want whatever it is. You can have it."

Bill huffed. "It's not cereal coupons this time, Pine Tree! It's actually-!"

"Oh good, pop tarts then," Dipper mumbled, rubbing his tired eyes. He blinked, squinting at his book before reading yet again. "I'd like the strawberry ones, if you don't mind."

Bill gave him a quizzical look. "I'm...are you drunk or...?"

"Do you see any bottles of wine around here?" Dipper answered simply. He flipped a page of his book. "Just go by yourself before I change my mind and make you wear a kid leash and drag you there myself to make you shut up for the day."

What even was he...oh!

"I entered exactly fifty-eight raffles and draws, Pine Tree!" Bill proclaimed grandly. He resisted the urge to smack the amusement park tickets across Dipper's face. But it wasn't a bad Plan B, actually. "I was wondering when it was gonna get here. Let's go Pine Tree, let's go!" He bounced in his seat, like a little kid ready to go to Disneyland. In a way, he kind of was. Without the little kid part. 

Dipper scoffed, adjusting his weight underneath him on the couch. "Whatever you say, Bill. Just let me finish this one chapter then we can go."

"YES!" Bill whooped, pumping his fist in the air. The tickets were still clutched in a fist. 

"So, chocolate flavored right? You better treat me out if you do then. I still want strawberry," Dipper grunted. 

Bill made a face. Seeing that Dipper was serious, he threw his hands up in the air. "Oh, come on!"

"Language," Dipper said wryly, copying his words for the irony of it. 

"Haitian Creole."

"Wait- what?"

"Nothing," Bill said quickly. "Just go and change for me, Dipper. We'll be leaving in five minutes."

"Who made _you_ boss?" Dipper challenged, eyes still on the words of his book. Bill made another face, getting a little frustrated with the situation. He'd pick Dipper up and carry him to the car himself if Dipper didn't get off his fine ass and changed into something more decent. 

"Ever since you let me fuck you," Bill said, not even sarcastically. Honestly, this kid. Why does he act like Bill can't blast him to another dimension if he really wanted to? But to be fair, Bill would never do that so- eh, Dipper had a point. 

"Bill!" 

 _"Because every inch of you is perfect from the_ bottom _to the_ top _,"_ Bill sang. He waggled his eyebrows suggestively, grinning like the poor hopeless romantic he was. 

Dipper's poor face was so red that Bill almost felt bad, if that was even possible for someone like him. Instead, he decided to make it up by laughing, standing up from his lazy spot on the floor to come over and plant a kiss on Dipper's forehead. He sat down heavily beside the brunet a moment soon after, much to his annoyance. But Dipper still scooted over, allowing Bill some room beside him. 

Bill shoved the tickers onto Dipper's chest, snatching up the boy's book and throwing it across the room with a dull thump to prevent him from trying to escape out of this. Dipper's brows shot up in surprise, turning to look at Bill with an irritated look. "Bill! I was on the plot twist chapter!" he snapped.

"He dies for her, the girl swears revenge, and kills the bad guy. It ends with him being alive the whole time and being horrified by her actions," Bill deadpanned. 

Dipper, now slightly confused, gave him a weird look. "You read?"

Bill would have been fine with, _"You read the book?"_ but nooooo, Pine Tree had to ruin everything. "Read it when we get home. If I'm wrong, I sleep on the couch."

Dipper lit up at his words. "Really?"

The demon huffed. Was Dipper seriously that excited for him to sleep on the couch? Yeesh. "Yes, now read the damn 'coupons' and change before I change you myself." Dipper rolled his eyes at this. 

"Fine, fine," he grumbled, scratching the tickets off his chest. He shuffled them, slowly like he was trying to spite Bill (which he might as well have been doing). Peering at the tickets, Dipper shifted his weight, seeming extremely confused by the whole situation set before him. And seeing that everything Bill had told him was true, his eyes widened to the size of saucers. 

"Two tickets? To- to the new amusement park in town? Bill, how did you-?" Dipper sputtered, lifting his head. 

"Magic," Bill replied simply. He simpered, much to Dipper's confusion. "That, and I think I spent about...hmm, maybe three thousand dollars on your credit card thing for raffle tickets?"

No longer surprised by Bill's actions, Dipper simply gave him an exasperated look. "This whole time," he said slowly, setting the tickets down on his lap, "I thought the money being spent was from Mabel spending random shit for her pet pig."

"Well, I'm glad we have that settled!" Bill exclaimed, clasping his hands together deviously. He bounced in his seat a little, much to Dipper's slight irritation. To be quite honest, more than half the random things he's done was to spite his lover. "Now, go get dressed and we'll leave in two minutes!"

Looking at him with a weird look, Dipper slowly got up from his seat. Sure, Dipper was wary about the whole thing, he could tell, but he could also tell that his lover was too used to Bill's random requests to even be a little bit concerned about this. Shaking his head with a sigh, Dipper stomped up to his room, grumbling, "The things I do for you. I swear to God if I lose you at the amusement park, I'm going to leave you there and burn everything you love in this household."

"Then you'd have to burn yourself too!" sang the demon. 

Dipper flipped him the bird. "Dude, roller coasters can make me scream louder than you can!" he shouted, just to annoy Bill. 

"Liar, liar- uh...pants for hire!"

"What's that even supposed to mean?!"

"It means I can get your pants off faster than Chris Hemsworth can!"

"Jokes on you, he got my pants off in two point nine seconds!" Dipper's voice was muffled by now, stifled by the walls upstairs, but Bill definitely heard him. 

"Har har, very funny, look I'm laughing," Bill answered dryly, crossing his arms. When Dipper didn't respond to him, he tipped forward. "Uh, Pine Tree, you were lying, right?" 

Still no response. 

"Dippeeeeer? _Baaaabe_?"

Nope. 

"Dipper, you son of a-!" Bill growled, stomping up the stairs. 

* * *

"Okay, so after we eat at one-thirty, we take a break for fifteen minutes. By then, we'd be close to the auditorium, so we might as well watch the horse riding show at two PM. After the show, it would be best to go to the nearest ride, which I think would be the merry-go-round, so-" Dipper rambled on, checking things off his checklist without once looking up. 

And the one time he did was when a girl snickered, looking back from Dipper to Bill with an amused look. He looked up only to glare at her, before coming back to his obsession with checklists. 

Dipper probably only did it because they were wearing matching red flannels. 

When Dipper walked down the stairs to finally meet up with Bill, the first thing he had said was, "No. I'm changing again." The only reason why he didn't change was because Bill bribed him by telling him that he can plan the whole day. Knowing that Bill would ruin everything if he planned, Dipper immediately took action and took matters to his own hands, even that meant walking around the amusement park with matching flannels. 

Bill grinned at his Pine Tree, arms over his head so he could stretch. His shirt and flannel came up with his stretch, flashing people with a strip of skin around his waist. Some teenaged girl passing by elbowed her friend, and that friend automatically took a picture of Bill with the little click going off. 

Again, with Dipper still in his summer-grumpiness mood, glared at the girls with a force of a thousand Bills. If Bill were to say so himself. 

The girl immediately stopped giggling, looks of surprise on their faces as being called out. Thankfully, before the scene could get anymore awkward, the girls were out of their line of vision and earshot by the time they had turned the corner. And when they did, Bill burst out laughing. 

"That's the sixth time you glared at some poor person, Pine Tree!" Bill commented with a sly grin, an arm slithering around Dipper's shoulders. While Dipper was in a bad mood, he didn't feel mean enough to shrug Bill off, much to the demon's joy. "Like damn, you'd check me out too if you caught me in the middle of the street."

"Well, not if I knew you were taken," Dipper grumbled under his breath, shaking his piece of paper to straighten it out. "Isn't the matching flannels enough to tell people you're mine?" Dipper added in exasperation. 

Bill's smile only widened. He pressed Dipper closer to his side. For reassurance, for possession, or for the hell of it, he didn't know. There was a large possibility that it was all three. "Glad you finally float my boat, kid. Now see, you know my pain when I see you with that red-headed she-demon!" Bill exclaimed, almost in a lecturing tone that a parent would give to their child. "Plus, they probably think we're 'bros', as your sister calls it."

"She's a friend, and you know how I feel about her now. They're different. They want you," Dipper replied simply, nodding at the people passing them. One girl even intentionally brushed her arm up next to Bill's, giggling with her friends obnoxiously while Bill tried his hardest not to cringe. Dipper's nose wrinkled, head dipping back down to the large piece of paper in his hands. "Desperately, it looks like," he said in distaste.

Bill chuckled, squeezing Dipper's arm reassuringly. "They mean nothing to me, you know that," Bill soothed. "Come on, how 'bout we cheer up your Grinch heart and get some milkshakes, huh?"

Dipper's lips curled down in a slight frown. "But it says here we're supposed to-"

"Don't care, butt's hair, bear's chair, let's go!" Bill piped enthusiastically. He slid his hand down and took hold of Dipper's wrist, pulling him along to the store right next to them.

"No, wait-!"

Too late, as they stopped directly in front of the shop's window. Bill let go of Dipper's hand, just to fish out a ten dollar bill (get it?) from his pocket. Slamming the bill on the wooden board, he barked out, "Two milkshakes please. Both strawberries. Make the straws bendy. Do all that and keep the change, old man."

The man running the shop simply raised his eyebrows in slight surprise, before shrugging and returning behind the counter with Bill's money clutched in his fist. They could hear him bellowing at someone there to get their orders right. 

Turning to look at Dipper, Bill grinned. "See? I never forgot your cravings! Aren't I a good boyfriend or what?"

"You woke me up with a crocodile in my room for our anniversary," said Dipper. 

"It was on sale and I put a bow tie on him!" Bill argued. They walked to the nearest table. 

"It almost ate me alive!"

"Dipper, sweetheart, no one can eat you alive but me."

"Do you ever shut up!" 

Being the gentleman he was, Bill pulled out Dipper's chair for him, bowing down next to the seat dramatically. Squinting in suspicion, Dipper sat down gently and rigidly, like he was expecting Bill to pull out the chair or put a whoopee cushion under there. Which Bill sadly would have done if he was trying to gain Dipper's affection twice as usual today. 

Bill walked over to the seat across from Dipper, tucking the seat closer to the table. He propped his hand on his elbow. "So," he purred, raising an eyebrow in amusement, "a little birdie told me you were being twice as jealous today."

Dipper scowled at him, tucking his schedule into his pocket while mumbling, "All my plans, _ruined_ because I couldn't say no to my own boyfriend." Smiling, Bill raised his eyebrows a little higher expectantly. Dipper grunted, rubbing one side of his face with a hand. The brunet seemed a little bit more exhausted than usual, showing that when he literally growled at anyone who as much as looked at Bill or him wrong. 

"Sorry, I just-" Dipper sighed, running a hand through his hair next. Deciding to start over, he took a deep breath, his eyes not once meeting with Bill's, even as the demon watched him closely. "I'm just a little...stressed today."

"Stressed?" At this, Bill gave him a slightly confused look. "If you told you were so stressed, I would have brought you here a long time ago! Too much work is bad for the soul, ya know."

As if something had broken over the young human, Dipper laughed carelessly, looking more like himself than he had all day. "It's not work, I promise. It's just...something," Dipper said, mumbling the last word. Now, it was clear that Dipper was certainly not meeting his eyes. He kept looking at the ground, drawing patterns on the dusty table mindlessly. "It's- it's nothing to worry about. I think it'll be over by tomorrow."

"You sure? You don't want me to bring you to the hospital or anything? Tylenol? Do you wanna go home?" Bill asked in worry, brows pulled together. 

"No, no," Dipper assured him, waving a hand in dismissal. He took a deep breath through his nose, slowly letting it go through his mouth. Then that's when he finally met Bill's eyes, looking at him with a determination that made Bill quite impressed. "I think it's a good thing you brought me here, anyway. Or else I would have never..."

"Never...?" Bill prodded. 

Smiling tiredly, dimples showing up on each side of Dipper's face, he called out an exhausted, "I'll tell you later." Bill's heart skipped in his chest, reminding him of how in love he still was, even after all these years. He shifted his weight, almost sighing in relief when he felt the item still safely tucked in his pocket.

Finally, _finally,_ their milkshakes arrived. A waiter came over with a silver platter, serving with a milkshake in front of each of them. Just as requested, the milkshakes were strawberry flavored, the straws bendy. Bill grunted in content, Dipper saying a quick thank you to their waiter before pinching his straw to stir it around in his tall glass.

Bill took a loud sip of his milkshake, watching Dipper just as closely as he had done before. The human only stared back, raising an eyebrow in question when Bill did not turn his gaze away. Still stirring, he spoke. "Can I help you...?"

"Hmm," Bill said, pretending to ponder over his question. Stumped, Bill shrugged, a wolfish smile on his face. "How do you like your milkshake, Pine Tree? Can you finish it all?"

"Well, I mean, it's a pretty tall glass, so I'm not really...sure, I guess," Dipper told him, still stirring his milkshake. He took a sip, licking his lips soon after. "And it's really good."

"Hmm," Bill said again, his smile just widening. It soon blossomed into a look of mischief, one that Dipper knew well. The brunet sighed, shaking his head before Bill had even done anything. "Look, whatever you're thinking, it's not a good idea. Don't you even dare think-"

Bill leaned back, grabbing his milkshake by the middle and outstretching his arm to the side. Then his fingers opened, letting go of the glass to let it crash to the cement with a loud shatter. Dipper cringed, eyes wide. Onlookers glanced at them, before returning to whatever they were doing. 

Dipper glanced up from the mess of glass and liquid on the floor, glowering at Bill. "Dude, what the hell! That was-!"

"Oops," Bill said, shrugging. The corners of his lips twitched, giving him away. 

"Bill, we're gonna get in trouble, what the fuck! If you don't clean that up, they'll-" Dipper said in a panic, eyes wide. 

Lazily, Bill snapped his fingers. The mess disappeared, leaving a perfectly clean spot on the cement. That, and switching the straw on Dipper's milkshake with two entwined together, making it shaped like a heart. Dipper yelped. 

Without even asking, Bill leaned over, taking the glass and sliding it over to the middle of their table, taking his end to take a sip. He smacked his lips, watching Dipper's blank look in amusement. "You're right, yours taste way better."

"You...broke your glass...to take some of mine?" said Dipper, his words uncertain and slow. He was looking at Bill in unamusement, the sole opposite of Bill's facial expression. Taking a slow sip, just to piss Dipper off for the hell of it, he bobbed his head. 

"It's more romantic this way!" Bill exclaimed happily. He wasn't blind to the stares of awe and envy people gave them when they passed by. Hell, one woman hit her boyfriend in the bicep with a teddy bear that Bill could only assume the boyfriend had given her. 

"Bill, people are staring," Dipper whispered. 

"So? Isn't that a good thing?" Bill asked, leaning forward. He took another sip, gulping down the milkshake. It was refreshing, especially out in the baking sun. The only reason why they weren't baked alive out here yet was because of the umbrella over their heads. "And hey, you were the one complaining about how people kept hitting on me because they didn't know we were dating. Show them, Pine Tree"

Caving in, Dipper leaned forward with Bill, pinching his straw and putting it in his mouth. He took a sip, avoiding Bill's gaze, as he had done before. There was color on his cheeks, the only indication of his slight embarrassment. "Come on, Dipper," Bill cooed, tapping his straw as some form of nervous tick, minus the nervousness. "You're killing me out here. You're not having dinner with the Queen, and even then you should be able to gulp this down in three seconds. Drink it all with me! First one done gets to chose the next ride!"

"Wait, that doesn't even make sense! We have the same dri-!" Dipper argued. But Bill didn't listen to him, already gulping down his milkshake with a concentrated look. Sighing with a shake of his head, Dipper drooped his head down, shoulders hunching with elbows on the table. He drank up the milkshake carefully, almost greedily at the same time.

By the end of it, Bill had seven brain freezes with Dipper only having a whooping zero of those. But hey, Bill wasn't complaining. It felt good to have a brain freeze! Uh, sometimes, at least. 

But while he kept flinching from the cold and the pounding headaches, he couldn't have it any either way, watching Dipper laugh merrily at his reckless behavior. He loved watching Dipper light up like this, not even realizing how breath-taking he looked when he was happy. And Gods, for the life of him, Bill wanted this man to be the one he married.

"What's with that face? Do I have whipped cream on my mouth?" Dipper snickered, getting the last of his giggles out while he wiped his face with the sleeve of his flannel. 

Bill propped his head back on his arm, watching Dipper with a contented smile. His gobsmacked look must have been mistaken for confusion for the poor boy, but the rest of the amusement park wasn't as blind. A little girl 'awww'd when she saw how Bill was looking at Dipper, a roller coaster photographer becoming distracted with his work by snapping a few pictures of the puppy-lovers with a coo, and a group of boys nudging each other and laughing happily while whispering things like, "Dude, that's so you with Amanda" or "Nah, bro. Even I'm not as whipped as that guy". Hell, the loudest of that group shouted "GET SOME NUTS, MY BROS. WOOOOO-!" before being smacked over the head by his friend. 

"You're really adorable, Dipper..." Bill mumbled, his voice tinged with dreaminess while he smiled idiotically. 

"Hmm?" Dipper said, lifting his head from looking into the milkshake cup to see if any was left. 

Bill snapped out of his trance, giving Dipper an apologetic grin. "Oh um- I- I said, 'You're really horrible, Dipper'. Heh."

Dipper gave him a weird look. "Why would I be horrible? If this is about me not believing you about the tickets thing, I-"

"Let's ride some rides!" Bill suddenly exclaimed, standing up from where he sat. He grabbed Dipper's wrist without even asking, pulling the human to his feet. 

"Wait, Bill, our sche-!"

"Pshhh," Bill scoffed, stomping over to the nearest ride. Behind them, a waiter bid them farewell and thanked them for coming, cleaning up their spot with a washcloth. Even with Dipper's protests, Bill could tell that he had won, since Dipper didn't try and stop him from walking to the line. 

Thankfully, the line to the Zipper was really short, with their turn only one spin away. 

Beside him, Dipper squeaked when he looked up at the ride they were going on. "Wait, should- shouldn't we start on smaller rides first then-?" he asked, voice tight and crackly. Bill laughed, putting an arm around his lover. 

"Ah, don't worry about it. I'll be there with you," Bill assured him. Dipper gulped visibly. 

"But- it looks dangerous," Dipper said uncertainly. 

"Since when did you become scared of heights like your sister? You'll be _fine,_  Dipper. I'll make sure of it," Bill said proudly. Suddenly, the line lurched forward, sending them to the front. Bill grinned, looking at Dipper. He kissed Dipper's forehead. "You'll be fine. I promise."

His words somehow relaxed the brunet, his shoulders slumping and a deep breath exhaling through the nose. The ride operator opened the cage for them, ushering two women out then beckoning Bill and Dipper to come in. Hand in hand, they walked up the steps to ride and ducked their heads, right into the cage. 

The moment they sat down, the front door closed shut in front of them, a click resounding and telling the people inside the all cages have been locked. Bill braced his arms on the little bars in front of them, swaying their cage carefully as he had always done in the past with Mabel when Dipper was too "busy" to not go to the other amusement parks with them.

"Don't," Dipper whispered, his voice trembling. "Don't do that."

The fear in his voice snapped Bill into place, his body freezing up and making the cage stay still as it raised up just a little, to allow another pair of people into the other cage. Bill glanced at Dipper in concern, brows pulled together. "Sorry, I didn't think you'd get scared with me doing that."

Dipper's face was one of pure terror, almost too pale in the sun coming through the holes of the cage. When their cart lurched upwards again, Dipper tightened his lips together, eyes almost popping out of their sockets in fright. His hands flew to the bars in front of them, breathing becoming heavy and fast. 

Bill frowned, craning his head to look at Dipper fully. "Why didn't you tell me you'd get so scared of this?" Bill asked him, almost in a scolding manner. "I would have brought us to something else!"

"I-" Dipper began hoarsely. He swallowed, starting over as best as he can. But his voice was still raspy, like he hadn't spoken in days. "You told me I'd be fine, so I just thought...you sounded so sure..."

"And I still am," Bill clarified. He scooted closer to Dipper, hearing the machine turn and click as it sent their cage farther up. They were almost close to the top. "And anyway, why are you so scared? I've seen you look down at the town from a quivering tower before, Dipper. Something like this should be child's play for you."

"It is," Dipper said, laughing at the irony of his words. "It's just that...when I get stressed, everything seems scarier, and I get dizzy, and everything turns, and- and-"

Bill hushed him, removing his hands from the bars. He wrapped his arms around Dipper, feeling the brunet curl snugly to his chest, his breathing slowly becoming steadier and steadier. Bill propped his chin on top of Dipper's head, feeling his heart beat increase with Dipper so close to him. He breathed in, closing his eyes, trying to live the moment before it was over. If anything, his actions calmed him down more than it calmed down Dipper. He buried his nose in Dipper's curls almost greedily, his fingers rubbing up and down the boy's arms.

"You'll be fine," Bill promised, arms tightening around Dipper when the cage moved, yet again. It wouldn't be long before they were moving all around. "I have to let go of you before this cage moves, okay? Don't-"

"No! Bill, I want to go down, tell them I want to go down, I-" Dipper rushed out in a panic, pushing Bill away to look at him with wide, frightened eyes. 

Bill raised his hands up to his chest. "There's only one way to fix your problem, Dipper, and I'll help if you cooperate," Bill told him in an even tone. "Alright?"

"What- what do I have to do?" Dipper asked him. On impulse, when the cage rocked from the breeze, Dipper's hands clamped around the bars.

Copying him, Bill calmly raised his hands and curled his fingers around the cool bars. Without even asking, he rocked the cage, just a little, like a test run. Dipper's knuckles turned white on the bars, his eyes automatically going below them. The color left in his face had already left. 

"BILL!" he screamed when the demon rocked them more profusely. 

"When this thing moves, I'm going to flip upside down! You have to help me!" Bill yelled over the whirs of the gears. "It's the only way you'll get over your fear of this stupid machine!"

"I'm not scared of it, I'm just stressed!" Dipper yelled back. 

"Most people eat ice cream and cry when they're stressed, you know!"

"And I get queasy and grumpy, now shut up and don't you _dare_ -"

The machine lurched their ride. Then stopped it. Then it came to life, gears working overtime and the ride operator flashed the riders a thumbs up from down below. Bill turned to look at Dipper with an innocent smile. "Too late," he sang. 

Then hell came to life for poor young Dipper.

The whole thing spun, spinning in three different directions at different speeds. Dipper screamed, hands on the bar so tight that the bars might come off. Bill simply held onto it for leverage, laughing and cheering for the machine to go faster. 

"Hahaha! You ready, Pine Tree?" Bill yelled over the screams and whirs of the machine. 

"What?! No, wait- Bill!"

"One!"

"BILL!" Dipper bellowed. 

"Two!"

"I'M NOT READY TO DIE!" Dipper wailed. 

Bill laughed. "THREE!" he yelled as loud as he could. Then he rocked their cage forward, then backward, then forward. 

"Dipper, help me! Just one spin, you'll like it!" Bill assured him. 

Whimpering, Dipper shifted his weight, an uncertain frown playing on his lips. Bill rocked forward, then backward- then Dipper joined in. Forward, backward- then they spun. 

"HA HA, TAKE THAT, MOTHERFU-!" Bill screamed at the top of his lungs. 

"LANGUAGE!" Dipper bellowed, eyes wide at the spin he just helped create. But the fear in his eyes had left, leaving a trace of "whoa, not bad" kind of look in his eyes. 

"Again?" Bill asked, turning to look at Dipper. Before the brunet could even open his mouth, Bill laughed, "AGAIN!"

Grunting, they spun again. Dipper didn't scream. But he laughed. 

They spun again. Then again. Backwards spin, then forwards. They did a spin four times in a row once, and even Bill was beginning to feel a little dizzy. 

The ride ended a little too quickly for their taste, their cage stooping to the lowest level. It opened up, thanks to the ride operator's key, who smiled at them and kindly asked them to come out for the next group. Gladly, Dipper and Bill came out, laughing and acting a little tipsy with their dizzy steps. 

They leaned against each other for support, laughing until they were against an ice cream shop, overlooking the other rides. 

"Wooooo! Let's go on it again!" Bill whooped, pumping his fists in the air. 

"No. As much as I liked that one, let's go on something else," Dipper laughed, pushing Bill to the side. Thanks to still being a little dizzy, Bill almost fell to the ground with a giggle. 

"Like what?" Bill asked.

Dipper's eyes scanned the area. Then his face lit up, and he pointed at the place across the amusement park. 

"Slingshot!" 

**************

"Oh my God," Bill groaned, lifting his head from the trash can. "Dipper, that was the greatest day of my entire  _existence._ "

Then, feeling queasy again with his stomach acting up, Bill belched, throwing his head back down to the trash can. "Ugh," he moaned, once he finished. 

Dipper rubbed his back soothingly, sighing. "I told you not to ride the spinning teacups three times in a row, Bill. Now look at what it did to you," Dipper sighed, sounding much like an exhausted parent. 

Bill straightened his back, wiping the back of his mouth. He craned his neck, giving Dipper a grin of no regrets. "So worth it though! Like c'mon, look at what you're wearing!" Bill exclaimed, fully turning around to point at Dipper's clothing. Dipper looked down at himself, then scowled back up at Bill.

"You _made_ me wear it," he said bitterly. 

"Only because it was the only thing left for me to conjure," Bill reminded him, bopping Dipper on the nose with a fingertip. Dipper's nose wrinkled cutely. 

When they went to the tall log ride just two hours ago, they came out of there with every article of clothing sopping wet and dripping water everywhere. Eventually, they had to go into the bathroom to try and dry off. When Dipper complained that they didn't bring any clothes and they should have, Bill snapped his fingers and brought up two sets of clothes. He gave one to Dipper and sent him to change, changing himself in a near bathroom stall. They came out with matching dress vests, slacks, and new dress shoes to match. 

There was a yellow rose pinned to Dipper's chest, and a blue one on Bill's.

Seeing that Dipper's rose was a little crooked, Bill stepped forward and took hold of his flower, adjusting it to straighten. He stuck his tongue out in concentration, wanting it to be perfect in every way, just as Dipper is.  

"There!" he said proudly, stepping back to admire his work. He put his hands on his hips, grinning.

Dipper looked down at his rose, then back up at Bill. "You are in every way a dork," Dipper announced. His eyes danced with a playful flame. 

"Mm," Bill hummed, tapping his chin in thought, "Maybe I've forgotten but I think something happened on that log ride lately, right?" He suppressed a bigger smile when Dipper made a face at him, blaming him for everything that happened and why he gave in on the first place. 

When they got to the very top of the log ride, Dipper probably felt a little too happy up there, glad for Bill taking him to the amusement park and letting go of his worries for the day. He took hold of Bill's face, not even bothering to warn Bill before he crashed his lips onto Bill's, kissing him deeply with the amount of happiness Bill had felt when Dipper had first kissed him all those years ago. 

And when Dipper let him go, embarrassed and ashamed, turning his face away in case Bill was looking at him weirdly, Bill decided to take things to his own hands. He grinned, a radiant smile that someone could have seen from miles away. And in fact, many, _many_ people had seen what he did and probably caught his smile before. 

Bill grabbed Dipper by the shoulders, turning him around slightly. He put two fingers on Dipper's chin, tilting it up so Dipper could see the pleasant gleam in his eyes. Then he closed the gap between them, his other arm wrapped around Dipper's waist to keep him secured. Dipper didn't fight him, instead kissing him back happily, both partners putting the amount of love into the kiss like they had when they first kissed. It was like a rewind button was put on them, reminding them that they were indeed still very much in love, and that every decision about each other was the right choice. 

When they came down the mountain, dripping wet, every male, female, child, elderly, dog, squirrel, _looked_  at them in stunned silence. Dipper had hung his head in shame. Bill had shifted his weight from foot to foot uncomfortably.

Then the whole damn amusement park exploded in cheers, cheering them on and congratulating them for being the cutest couple they had ever seen. A photographer, the same one who had taken a picture of them drinking the milkshakes, came over and talked to them, opening up their camera and showing them the picture on it. It was a perfect captured picture of them kissing on top of the log ride before it pummeled down. The photographer had offered to have it printed and framed, all for free. 

Bill agreed with the biggest smile on his face. Dipper had been reluctant, but one puppy-eyed look from Bill made him huff, the tips of his ears turning red before he turned to look at the photographer and said yes. 

The carefully framed photo was in the backpack strapped to Bill's back, a backpack they had also bought to store all the prizes Bill had won for Dipper. 

"I'll win you a million teddy bears!" Bill had announced when they walked through the carnival games, hand in hand with Dipper looking at every large prize in awe. 

"But what if I want a trillion?" Dipper had asked, a small smirk on his face. 

"Well, that's a little unrealistic," Bill huffed. Then Dipper had laughed at him, planting a kiss on his cheek and saying sure, Bill could at least try and get him a million teddy bears. 

True to his word, Bill won him exactly a thousand three hundred thirty-eight teddy bears before Dipper forced him to stop, spending a whole hour handing out teddy bears to kids they deemed "worthy". 

After that, it was well after lunch, but they still hadn't eaten. Bill, horrified when he heard Dipper's stomach growl, dragged the brunet to the food court and bough a whole three course meal for him. Then they spent another whole hour eating. Or, Dipper did, while Bill watched with a small smile, always asking if Dipper wanted more, or if he needed water, or needed something else like someone to be killed. It was only when Dipper forced him to eat as well did he stop. 

It was like straight out of Lady and the Tramp when Bill bought some spaghetti and meatballs, sharing the one plate full of it because Dipper had forced him to eat. When a string of spaghetti connected to the both of them, they stared at each other in awed silence, before giggling and slurping it up, finishing it off with a peck to the lips that made them laugh. 

After that, they rode some more rides. Even the scariest ones, like the haunted houses and upside down roller-coasters. There was even one point where they entered a cheap looking haunted house that made them both yawn. But when Dipper yelped and stepped back, cutting his hand on one of the sharp edges of the props, Bill had _exploded._

It took the help of five employees, an elderly lady with a heavy handbag, and Dipper to calm him down and not beat the unholy fuck out of the guy who surprised Dipper. 

Throughout the whole day, he kept hearing people whisper and giggle when Dipper and him walked by. At first, Bill had thought it was because of the "checking out" thing, but Dipper pointed out that they were saying things like, "Jesus Christ, I ship them" and "I want to marry him. No, but I want the brunet to marry him. Ugh!" and even "Holy shit, it's them. It's billdipping". 

After everything that happened through the day, they were reduced to tired messes by the time the sun was going down. 

"Shouldn't we go home?" Dipper asked him, yawning from exhaustion.

Bill shrugged. He slid closer to Dipper, entwining his hand with Dipper's where it should belong. "I mean, if you're tired, sure. But we can go on one more ride if you want."

"I'd like that," Dipper beamed. "But uh, what ride are you thinking of?"

Bill smiled encouragingly at him. He nudged Dipper's arm, pointing at the ride across from them with their entwined hands so that Dipper was pointing at it too. "The love tunnel."

Dipper's brow furrowed, squinting at the couples lined up for the tunnel. "Are you...sure? I mean, it's just a slow boat ride down the tunnel and-"

"Exactly," Bill chirped, already leading them towards the ride. "It's perfect!"

Dipper let him lead the way, not making any more comments. In fact, for some reason, Dipper looked a little...alarmed? Bill almost stopped dead on the way there. It wasn't possible that Dipper was having a feeling that he knew what Bill was doing and didn't like it, right? 

Aw great, now _Bill_ was the one becoming alarmed. 

But it was a little too late to back up now. They lined up, with couples already lining up behind them. The line, even though many were coming to the ride, was moving extremely fast considering how slow the other big lines were. Curious now, Bill came up on his tip-toes, looking over the heads of tall boyfriends. 

His heart stopped dead in his chest. Many couples were coming out of the tunnels, most looking disappointed. And those who looked disappointed were ones clutching velvet boxes, chocolates, and/or flowers. 

One thought crossed his mind, a thought that hadn't snugly came up into his worried head until now; what if Dipper said no? 

What if he was asking too fast? What if Dipper hated what the ring looked like? What if Dipper didn't want to become all his yet? What if Dipper just simply said _no_? What then?

Gulping, Bill came forward with Dipper. His hand became sweaty in Dipper's. Or, was that Dipper's hand that was sweating? He couldn't even tell anymore.

Beside him, Dipper still hadn't said a word.

They were quiet, all through the line, despite every single couple around them talking about how romantic it would be in there, or what they were gonna do after this. A whole bunch of them sounded hopeful, leaving Bill to believe that he wasn't the only one going to propose tonight. But a whole bunch also sounded nervous, leaving Bill to purse his lips, knowing that he definitely wasn't the only one worried about what the other was going to say.

Soon, Dipper and him were to ride the next boat. 

The employee, a woman with a walkie-talkie attached to her hip, gestured to them to come, pointing at the boat floating on the water. The tunnel beyond was dark, and there were no giggles or "will you marry me?" coming out there. Bill felt himself tense up. It was probably designed that no one could hear what you're doing in there, not even other passengers on other boats. Good. Or bad? He didn't even know anymore and that was making him a little uneasy.

The woman barked a few words at them, telling them the safety of the boat and not to get out until said so and what not. She told them that one of them had to paddle the boat and Bill automatically volunteered before Dipper could even utter a word. When she asked them if they got it and they nodded back, she let them go.

Bill climbed into the boat, one hand on the dock to keep the boat from straying far and the other hand outstretching to Dipper, palm up. Dipper took his hand, letting Bill gently pull him into the boat with a kind of gentleness that left Dipper breathless. Literally, when he accidentally slipped and fell right onto Bill's chest. 

Laughing, they both got up, with Dipper apologizing to him for his clumsiness, which Bill had commented was just cute to him. Dipper pushed him back against the boat playfully, sitting down on the seat closest to him with a scoff. Bill got up with a grin, taking the tall paddle from the ground and sitting across from Dipper. The employee gave their boat a little push to get them going, waving goodbye. 

"Well," Bill hummed, threading the water with his paddle slowly. "Welcome to the Batcave, kid."

Dipper folded his arms over his stomach, giving Bill a soft smile in return. Again, the quiet, nervous Dipper was back in full force, making Bill frown. What did he do to make Dipper so nervous around him here, alone?

Dipper wasn't scared of him, was he?

"Hey," Bill called out quietly. Dipper looked up at him in question. Still threading the water, Bill spoke, his voice soft and quiet, like someone would be listening in to them. "You don't have to sit here alone with me. I can make this go faster and have us out of here in twenty seconds."

"W- what?" Dipper stuttered, looking at Bill in complete surprise.

"Well, you're scared of me, aren't you?" Bill asked him, a slight bitter edge to his tone, no matter how hard he tried not to leave it. Then he chuckled to cover up, turning his eyes away from Dipper to watch the water. Candle lights were strategically put here, to make the tunnel seem ten times more romantic. "Or, at the very least, uncomfortable being alone with me."

"What? Bill, no, of course not! What made you think that I- that you'd- that you'd ever seem scary to me?" Dipper asked in disbelief. He blinked at Bill, surprised at his words. 

"Well, every single time you're alone with me, you act a little bit more...distant," Bill answered, speaking slowly. "Up in the Zipper, you were scared. Then in the haunted house when our guide left us. Don't tell me you're not uncomfortable being alone with a demon because I know you are."

"I was left alone in the house with you," said Dipper, bluntly. 

"You have your family on speed-dial and can have them in the Shack in four seconds flat," Bill replied easily. "Here, it'd take them a whole hour. So, what's it about me that's scary? My personality? My actions to you? Because I would gladly change if you-"

"No!" Dipper yelled, startling them both. 

"I- I mean-" he stammered, eyes wide. 

He sighed, frustrated with himself, or with Bill. Either way, he seemed extremely conflicted. He rubbed his temples, suddenly looking older and a hundred times more exhausted. "Bill, it's not you, it's me," he said desperately. 

"Don't people always say that before a break-up?" Bill inquired, tilting his head. He tried not to show the hurt and panic in his voice, but he knew Dipper heard. 

"No! I mean- yes! But no! I-" Dipper yelped, eyes flickering between many different kinds of emotions. He then took a deep breath, trying his best to calm down and talk to Bill like a proper human. Bill kept threading the water, as quietly and robot-like as he could. "I mean- yes, people say that before break-ups in movies and in real life but- that's not what I'm trying to _do_ right now. It's- it's actually quite the o-" Dipper mumbled. 

"Hold that thought," Bill cut off. The lump in his throat got bigger with his words. He didn't know why he just cut off Dipper in the middle of his little speech, nor did he know why he got a sudden urge to just tell Dipper, right there and then.

He originally planned to joke with Dipper first, to get the brunet to relaxed first. Then he would have asked for complete silence, Dipper questioning why when Bill didn't do anything yet. Then Bill would get down on one knee, say his speech that would move the young human to tears, then he'd pull out the ring, ask for Dipper's hand in marriage so they could be bonded once again, and Dipper would say yes, a hundred times yes, and Bill would be the one to cry tears of joy next as he peppers Dipper with kisses and "I love you"s and he'd mean every single word. 

But as he shifted his weight to pull out the ring, to ditch the whole plan and just have this stupid rejection hurt less than it was already hurting him, he found nothing. 

Nothing in the pocket he left the ring in. 

It was gone.

Panicking now, Bill's breath hitched, patting down his whole pocket. Then he began patting down his other pocket, then his back pocket, and then took off his backpack from his back and began rummaging through it. All the while, Dipper watched him in curiosity, but didn't speak.

It was only when Bill threw his backpack back on and growled under his breath did Dipper speak. "What were you looking for?"

"Nothing, just...just something..." Bill murmured, burying his face in his hands. The paddle clattered to the middle of the boat, making Dipper cringe back at the resounding noise it made. He suddenly felt tired, exhausted to the bones. He felt like curling up in a ball and dying. He'd much rather do that than admit to Dipper as to what happened, and why he looked like he was about to ball his eyeballs. 

It wasn't the cost of the ring going down the drain that made him cry (hell, he could have gotten the same ring with no problem). It was what he _did_ with the ring that made him feel like absolute shit. 

When a demon claims an item to use to propose to their soulmate, it is theirs to protect and keep. Break that item, whatever it is, and by any circumstances, and you cannot propose to your soulmate anymore, not ever. Because that item was a metaphorical symbol for a heart, and people only have one. 

So by losing that ring, he lost Dipper's heart. 

"Bill? _Bill?_ You're scaring me, what's going on with you?" Dipper called out, his voice cutting through Bill's train of thought like a sharp knife. Bill looked up. 

He saw Dipper, looking at him in pure concern, a hand on Bill's knee. Dipper looked lost, like he wanted to comfort Bill but he didn't know how. And his look of concern only deepened when Bill sniffed, his eyes red from rubbing them so they wouldn't spill tears. 

"I'm sorry, Dipper," Bill said, voice hoarse and croaky. His heart thrummed in his chest, and he wanted nothing more than to flip the whole amusement park upside down to look for that goddamned ring. He wanted to pull his hair out, to duct tape his mouth shut before he said things he'd regret.

"What did you do?" Dipper whispered. He understood the pain in Bill's eyes, the utter panic that came with it. 

Growling, Bill stood up in a flourish, snapping, _"You wouldn't understand!"_ before leaning over the small boat to look at the water. He wondered if he dropped it in the water somehow, if he could just find it and everything could go back according to plan. 

But there was nothing in the water. Absolutely nothing. 

Bill leaned back, cursing as loudly as he can in every language he knew, ancient and new, while he kicked the side of the boat. He slammed his hand on the side of the wooden craft, screaming and kicking like a tantruming child. 

"Bill!" Dipper snapped.

"Why does the world hate me so much?! I get ruining my plans of having the whole world, but destroying my _universe_?! Are you kidding me?! _Are you fucking kidding me_?!" Bill bellowed, kicking the side of the boat yet again. It rocked them a little. 

_"Bill!"_

"It's one thing to take a demon's goddamn plans to rule the world, you know, but taking their soulmate? I can literally have someone killed for that, _killed,_ Pine Tree!" He huffed out a humorlessly laugh, one that shook his shoulders.

"Bill, calm down! Nothing can be that bad to make you-"

"AND YOU KNOW WHO WOULD BE KILLED FOR THAT FELONY, DIPPER?!" Bill snarled. He turned to face his lover, eyes burning with a rage that made Dipper wince, thinking that the anger was for _him._ And it just made Bill angrier, to the point that he slammed a fist to the top side of the boat and caused a hole.  

" _ME!_ ME, BECAUSE I LOST YOUR FUCKING RING AND IT'S ALL. MY. _FAULT_!" Bill thundered, running his hands through his hair angrily as he sat down, done with his little rant. 

The tunnel suddenly became quiet. Their boat no longer being pushed forward because no one was attending it. It just rocked a little from the ripples in the water. No other boat came by to pass them, allowing them their privacy. But it did nothing to calm down the frustrated demon. 

He didn't know how long it took for Dipper to finally speak, but when he did, Bill couldn't help but scrunch up his shoulders.

"You...lost the ring?" Dipper asked, his voice awfully quiet. "The one you were gonna give me?"

"To- to propose, yes," Bill told him, voice just as quiet. He didn't bother lifting his head to look at Dipper. It would just make him feel guiltier, even though he doubted that was possible with how much guilt he was already harboring with how... _reticent_ Dipper was acting. 

"I...I wanted to ask you to be mine forever, Dipper," Bill continued when no one spoke. His voice still sounded as hoarse as ever, but with never-ending sadness mixed in with it. Finally, he looked up to meet Dipper's eyes. The brunet's face was one of pure shock, frozen of how to proceed. 

"Bill," Dipper whispered. He reached out for him, but thought better of it, receding his hand. "I was already yours forever in the first place."

Bill's throat closed up, his heart climbing in his throat. He wanted to sob, right there and then, to stand up and kick this stupid boat over and over again for making him face Dipper. "I wanted you," Bill told him, a touch of desperation in his tone. He looked up at Dipper. "I _need_ you in my life. But without a ring...I- I can't."

"You need a ring for me to be yours?" Dipper asked in disbelief. 

"Yes," Bill admitted. "A ring was what started this, a ring is what would end it." He laughed at his own words, eyes turning away from Dipper. "But it's gone and the amusement park is too big to find it. I'd spend all day looking for it right now if I could, but...you already know and I think I got your answer."

"You have my answer," Dipper said slowly. Bill turned his eyes back to him in question. "But I don't have yours."

Bill's brow furrowed in confusion. What in the world was Dipper trying to say?

And as if Dipper had heard him loud and clear, he knelt in front of Bill, startling the hell out of the demon. Before he knew it, Dipper had a small yellow velvet box out, opened and ready for Bill. 

There, sat a golden ring, noticeably handcrafted and beautifully carved. 

Bill gaped at it, unable to make words. Every word he wanted to say to Dipper just flew out of his head, literally leaving him speechless. He looked back up at his lover, who watched his reaction with the faintest of smiles. 

"I was going to wait," Dipper explained. "I wanted you to remember every word I said to you with the sappiest speech I made up. But I think you already know."

"You were going to propose to me this whole time?" Bill asked, eyes wide in surprise. 

Dipper nodded. His hand quivered, a noticeable sign that the brunet was a little nervous. 

"I would have told you that you'd be mine and I'd be yours forever, and that I love you, but I'm sure you knew all that."

"Damn it!" Bill cursed, standing up and kicking the side of the boat yet again. His anger flared up. "Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it _damn it_!" 

Alarmed, Dipper closed up the velvet box with a dull thud, looking up at Bill in confusion. His eyes flashed with hurt, but it was gone the moment Bill turned to look at him. "Wha- what's wrong? Was I not supposed to do this with you?" Dipper asked, panic coating his words. "I mean I- I could return the ring, I just...wanted to see if you'd say yes and..." His words became quieter than the last.

"No, don't do that!" Bill snapped, making Dipper wince. His eyes softened at the sight of his lover still kneeling, looking misplaced and saddened. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to scare you like that, I-"

He shook his head, giving a little laugh. "I wanted to be the one to propose first. Yeesh, I'm being such a baby," Bill chuckled. 

"So...was...that a yes?" Dipper asked unsurely, rubbing the back of his neck. He still looked nervous, but at least he had stood up and sidled up next to Bill. 

Instead of answering, Bill smiled at him warmly, the answer already in his eyes. He turned around, draping his arms around Dipper's shoulders. In response, Dipper put his hands on Bill's hips, watching him with chocolate brown eyes that seemed to melt in the candle lights. His eyes melted to a beautiful rich brown with Bill's heart. 

No one knew which person moved person. They didn't care. All that mattered was that they broke the spell together, tugging each other close and kissing each other in a way that none of them would ever forget.

Something out of the corner of his eye made Bill pull back in surprise, blinking his eyes twice. Dipper, still dazed by the lovely kiss they shared, rubbed at his eyes. He frowned at Bill's expression at the water, craning his neck to see what Bill was looking at too. "What are you-? Oh."

There, floating and bobbing and heading straight for them, was a velvet box. 


	4. The Death of a Bachelor, Letting the Water Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ever since Dipper went to college and took marine biology as a second course, he became a little tad too obsessed with the little bottom feeders. Most people go to aquariums to look at the little fishes and buy souvenirs, right? But to be asked on a date with a hot megalomaniac after your sister ditches you and befriend a sea lion after he helps you get some of that booty? Probably not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's a little late, I fell asleep writing this last night lol. I sat in front of my laptop in front of a blank document for three hours straight, having no ideas for a goddamned aquarium date because I never went on one before D:. Bruh, I'm an Aquarius, this should be easy for me, what is this abomination.
> 
> If it seems rushed, blame my 3AM induced mind from last night. Without further ado, enjoy this fic that I had no idea where it was heading :D To be quite honest, I just recycled a bunch of ideas from different stories of mine and mixed it in this because I was just that original lol.

Mabel snapped another picture, blinding Dipper with the white flash that came with up. 

"Aw, Dipper you blinked!" Mabel complained, looking up from her camera to give Dipper a somewhat dirty look. Dipper had no doubt that she would become a great blurry-picture taking mother one day. 

"You didn't tell me you were gonna take a picture!" Dipper argued, rubbing his right eye. Then he blinked twice, grimacing to himself. He never really took pictures well before and didn't even understood why he even let Mabel carry a camera around on this trip. 

"I don't have to!" Mabel piped up, letting the camera dangle back around her neck. She bounced on her toes, turning around to put a hand on the glass, a little fish coming by to check out the thing pressed against their home. "You're perfectly capable of smiling and posing, Dipper."

"Yeah sure, say that to my third grade photographer," Dipper grumbled, pulling his hat lower over his eyes. Adjusting his messenger bag over his shoulder, Dipper craned his neck to watch a green fish swim away over his head. As a college student, Dipper grew out of his pine tree hat years ago, ditching it for his college's logo, a brown and red one that fitted nicely with his hoodie. 

"Dipper, Dipper, look at that one!" Mabel squealed, now jumping up and down in her spot, reaching over for her brother and shaking him, other arm pointing at the stingray that passed by. It lifted its head, showing the little mouth and slits that made it look like a face. 

"Huh," Dipper said with a frown. He leaned in closer, one hand tight around his bag's strap. He pointed a finger at the fish on the ground right below the stingray. "I think that one's sick."

"Sick sick, or just sick?" Mabel asked him, pressing her nose against the glass to see the sickened fish. By now, she was already used to Dipper's scarily accurate observations of fish and marine life. 

"Just sick," Dipper sighed, leaning away. And by now, he was used to her weird questions. "It'll get better soon, but I think we should alert an expert in case it gets eaten."

"Whoa," Mabel whistled. She still had her face pressed against the glass. "As much as I like watching things get eaten alive on television, I don't think I can live with the guilt of seeing that poor guppy dying  on my watch."

"That's a Siamese fighting fish, Mabel, not a guppy," Dipper told her. "Guppies are smaller in size, and you can tell with the fin that it's-"

"Yadda yadda yadda," Mabel cut off, rolling her eyes. She unglued her face from the glass, giving Dipper an amused grin. "Bro-Bro, I told you we'd be here to have fun, not research!" she scolded, hitting his arm playfully.

Dipper scoffed, pushing her back. "I'm not researching! I'm just stating facts!" Dipper argued. 

Mabel gave him a pointed look. She just stared at him for a long while, crossing her arms over her chest like a mother catching her child sneaking out of the house. After a while, Dipper shrugged, giving his twin a sheepish smile. 

"Okay, maybe I just agreed to coming here to help me with my thesis-"

"HA!"

"-but that doesn't mean I won't have fun with my awesome, wonderful, forgiving twin sister who I would never replace, right?" Dipper drawled, innocence coating his words. 

Mabel huffed, blowing a strand of hair out of face. She narrowed her eyes at Dipper, just slightly. "Great, now you're just milking this, dude."

Dipper let out a soft laugh, turning on his heel to face the exit. Mabel soon followed suit, walking beside him with her camera at the ready in case something interesting happened around the tunnel they were in. "So, what do we do now?" he inquired. Unfortunately, he lost the map for the aquarium exhibits when he bumped into a person. Now they just walked aimlessly around the exhibits hoping that they didn't end up somewhere boring. "I don't think we have any places left for us to go to."

"You kidding me, Dippin' Dots?" Mabel snorted, snapping a picture of yet another stingray. "We haven't even seen the jellyfishes! Or the sea lion show! Or fed the penguins! Or-!"

"Mabel, you are the sole and only reason why we've gone broke and had to resort to working part time at our Grunkle's tourist trap," Dipper clarified. 

"Mhm," Mabel hummed, unconvinced. Her flash went off when she tried to sneakily take a picture of a hot guy behind them, quickly hiding her camera in her sweater when the blond boy looked up from his map in confusion. "Anyway, you pick our direction this time. Left, right, or forward, Aoshima!"

"Right," Dipper instantly replied. She nudged his shoulder. 

"Mr. Pines, always choosing the right direction because he thinks he's always right," Mabel said in a deep voice, causing the twin to snicker at her comical behavior. 

"Oh shut up, Mabel. If you brought an extra map with us, we wouldn't have spent three hours watching a guy talk about fish reproduction."

Mabel shivered at the recent memory, dropping her camera to swing back around her neck. "Please, don't remind me," she said in disgust. "I think I saw a guy throw up in a trash can beside me. And hey, you enjoyed it, so don't blame me!"

"Only because it was educational and important to my section I was working on!" Dipper told her. 

The brunette snickered, pushing open the double doors to exit the ocean tunnel. They walked right into the main area of the aquarium, people with kids or partners walking about. "What, is your thesis about how male sea horses shoot like three thousand kids out of their bellies?"

"Two thousand is the maximum, Mabel," Dipper corrected. "And in fact, yes. A section of it, at least."

Mabel gave him a bemused look, tilting her head. They kept walking, none of them seeming to stop. They turned a corner, to the right side of the main area as Dipper had requested. "Sometimes, I fear for your mental health, Dipper," Mabel sighed, shaking her head. "Why would you even want to learn about fishes for the rest of your life? And why is this thesis so important?"

"Some of them are unique, Mabel," Dipper explained to her, as patiently as he could. He felt like he already went through this conversation with her about three hundred times in the past. "They're like anomalies! And even the most common ones have something not so common and I think it would be worth my time studying them." Then he thought about her last question for a while. 

"First of all, that thesis can determine whether I get kicked out of class or not, Mabel. But my professor also set a prize for all of us. The one with the best research and well-known, hands on experience, gets to meet the CEO of the Gravity Falls Aquarium and get a whole free tour of the place. Do you have any idea how good that sounds on a resume? Marine biology would rocket me further, I just know it!"

"Says you, who took a whole course in astronomy then quit because it was too boring," Mabel answered with a roll of her eyes. 

"Ah, shut up." The tips of his ears warmed, tingly at the embarrassed feeling. 

"But hey, you know it's true!" Mabel teased. She nudged his shoulder yet again. "But hey, if anything else fails and you get no job, you could always work at the Mystery Shack. Or, you know, marry someone and then kill them and gain their-"

"Hey, that fish looks like Gorebyss!" exclaimed an excited voice. 

Assuming it was a child holding their mom's hand while they walked down the tanks, Dipper glanced, already bored with the place they had dragged themselves into, which was apparently a miscellaneous area of the aquarium. 

But it was a tall, handsome man, around Dipper's college age. He wore a yellow blaze with a white shirt underneath, something not many could pull off. But this guy killed everything- from his messy hair to his mischievous eyes to his gentleman-y clothing. 

It was like looking at a supermodel. If supermodels liked to jump and down in excitement from identifying a Pokemon to a fish species. He was worst than Mabel. 

"Too hot," Mabel said, leaning in close to Dipper as she too watched the guy freak out over the fish. Then the handsome man ran his fingers through his hair to get it out of his face, a strip of bare skin showing from his blazer hiking up with his raised arm. 

"Hot _damn_ ," whispered Dipper and Mabel, at scarily the same time. 

They looked at each other with different expressions. Dipper looked at her with raised eyebrows, while Mabel simply gave him an amused look. "Well," she chirped, giving Dipper a slight quirk of the lips, "I guess we found who you'll kill after you marry."

"For the last time, shut up already," Dipper groaned, stepping on Mabel's foot to try and get her to shut her mouth. But Mabel just giggled, stepping away from him so he could stop stepping on her poor foot. "Mabel, he's like, supermodel-level kind of hot. He won't talk to a college student who majors in marine biology, might as well date them."

"Sounds to me that someone is a little bitter," Mabel hummed, lifting her camera briefly to snap a photo of a large flat fish slowly making its way around its tank. "Just talk to him, Dipper! The worst that can happen is that he won't be interested. The best thing that would happen is that he asks you out after this and makes you his awkward, dorky boyfriend," she said optimistically, stepping on his shoe next. 

Something in her eyes, the way they were sparkling, rubbed him the wrong way. It wasn't that mischief kind of glint Mabel always had before she dumped a whole bucket of ice water on his head. It was...a knowing kind of look, like she knew something he didn't.

"That, or he scoffs when he sees me and then tell everyone how weird I am for spewing random marine facts when I get nervous and show off his girlfriend to me and-" Dipper rambled on, counting every single reason on his fingers. 

He lifted his head, then did a full 360 when his sister presence was nowhere to be found. Seeing that she was indeed gone, her head poking out from behind a tank to wave at him and mouth, "I'll be at the food court, bye!", he grumbled.

"Aaand, she's gone," he said to himself, shaking his head. 

Great, now what?

How do you even talk to another human being? "Howdy partner"? "How do you do"? "You're extremely hot and adorable talking about those fishes like they're Pokemon and I used to be the biggest Pokemon fan ever so could I join you"? 

Socializing is hard. 

Dipper took a deep breath, one hand clamping around his bag's strap. He puffed out his chest, walking right up to the mysterious hottie. But the moment he got within the man's thirty feet radius, he changed course, walking up beside the tank next to the man instead. But hey, it was better than nothing. On another day, he would have chased after his sister for leaving him alone. 

"Luvdisc!" the man exclaimed, pointing at the weird looking pink fish scurrying away in his tank. Dipper glanced at it briefly, before pretending to gaze at the fishes in his tank. He didn't know who the man was talking to, but he suddenly felt the itch to respond to the guy that hey, that fish over there looks like a magikarp. 

"Whoa, that looks exactly like a shellos," he whistled, crossing his arms in front of him. For someone speaking to himself, he was speaking extremely loud. What person would speak this loudly talking to themselves?

Except, of course, if they wanted someone else to join in with their conversation. 

Warily, Dipper glanced behind him. Just a brief look, to see if the man was trying to impress someone else here. But no one, other than him and the stranger, was here in the sad placement of tanks. He looked back at his own tank, pursing his lips. 

"Stunfisk!" the man gasped, pressing his hands onto the glass excitedly. He leaned in, almost vibrating with excitement at his discovery at seeing a new species that looks like the Pokemon he was thinking of. "Ha, I'm awesome," he gloated, smirking to himself. 

Dipper shifted his weight from foot to foot, feeling the words burning in his throat. Never in his life had he felt like wanting to talk to someone so badly in his entire life. He was an introvert, through and through, sometimes even with his twin sister. So wanting to talk to someone and be the first to make conversation startled him a little, making him wonder why this stranger was just so... _approachable_. 

"Hey, that one looks like that weird pink thing that gave my old friend nightmares!" the stranger guffawed, tapping the glass. "Of course, he's no longer my friend after he thoroughly betrayed me, in which I had to ruin everything from his image to his nose, but you know, it was still a funny memory!"

Now, Dipper was getting a little more tempted. No one was here except him and that guy, so who else would he be talking to? Maybe the man was trying to catch his attention. 

Or, it was entirely possible that the stranger was talking to the fish themselves. Dipper has seen Mabel done weirder things before and talking to fish or any type of animal was one of them. 

"Don't you think that one looks like a magikarp?" 

Ignoring the man to leave him be with his random talking to fishes, Dipper pulled out his notebook silently, clicking his pen to write down some notes about the behavior of the fish inside the tanks he were looking through. 

"Hey, come on, don't ignore me."

Dipper's brow scrunched together, scribbling the weird behavior and color of one fish that totally shouldn't be that shade of gray. Perhaps he should really call in an expert for this one, as this species was on the endangered species list, and letting it die would-

"What, are you mute or something, Pine Tree? Just nod or something, jeez!"

Startled, Dipper looked up, almost dropping his pen in the process. The man looked at him with an exasperated look, staring straight at him, not at the fishes. Being so close to the stranger, Dipper realized that there were dimples on him, and light freckles that reminded him of reading astrology textbooks and staring tiredly at the pictures of galaxies late at night. He gulped, stepping backward self-consciously.

"Ye- yeah?" Dipper asked, unsure, even until now, if the man was speaking directly to him. 

There was no way in hell this person would have known he wore a pine tree hat from his Grunkle's Shack years ago. 

"Oh, so you're not mute! Good!" the man said giddily, turning his eyes back to the tank. "You watch Pokemon, don't you?"

"Uh...I used to, yes," Dipper admitted. He wasn't about to tell this stranger that he used to have a pikachu blanket and toys from McDonald's when Pokemon was still the 'it' show. 

"Awesome! See any Pokemons we could catch?"

Mildly surprised by the question, Dipper's eyes came onto the tank the man was looking at. They automatically landed and locked onto one of those creatures. He pointed at it, tapping the glass lightly as to make sure he didn't scare the crap out of any of the creatures and cause stress in them.

"There's a mudkip right there," he answered, meekly in case the stranger would judge him for finding a Pokemon so quickly.

But instead, the guy grinned, leaning in close to see the creature. "Whoa, you're actually right, Pine Tree. You can use my pokeball on that one, you earned it!" 

Suppressing a laugh, Dipper stuffed his notebook back in his messenger bag, his attention to the apparently extremely-hot-that-he-can-melt-snowmen stranger. "Keep your pokeball, I have my own. Plus, I need to research on all those Pokemon anyway."

"Really? That's awesome, Pine Tree!" the man grinned, turning his head to look at him. One hand still pressed firmly against the glass, he said, "I always wanted to become a marine biologist. But I changed my major to economics, so I got that going for me."

Genuinely surprised by his turn of words, Dipper blinked. Here he was, thinking this dude was some sort of eight year old in disguise. "You- you wanted to become a marine biologist?" he asked. Sadly, his voice cracked ever so slightly, making him sound like an eight year old. 

"Yeah! But things don't work out sometimes, you know? Anyway," the man waved off, turning his full body to face Dipper. He stuck out a hand, in which Dipper hesitantly shook. The guy had a firm grip, strong and in control, even with just one shake. "I'm Bill Cipher, at your humble service. I came here to Gravity Falls to make a deal with an old client of mine by the name of Stanford Pines. And you are?"

"Oh um," Dipper stammered. Many versions of _hey, I'm Dipper Pines_ came through his mind, forcing him into silence for a good moment. But Bill just waited patiently, a small smile playing on his lips. "I'm- I'm Dopper Pi- Dipper! I'm Dipper Pines. I came here with my twin sister for a little get-away time to ourselves, but she ditched me to uh- uh, just get some food."

Then Bill's words finally processed in his head, and Dipper frowned. "Stanford. You're meeting up with my Gru- Great Uncle?"

Bill tilted his head to side, just slightly. "Dipper Pines, Stanford Pines. Huh." Then he brought his eyes to the tank, just for a brief moment, with his lips tugging down ever so slightly. "Well, I do admit that I see a slight resemblance between you two. It isn't hard to see that both of you are the nerds of your family." 

Dipper shrugged, hiking his bag strap more comfortably around his shoulder. "I get that a lot. With people who know both my great uncle and I, at least." He huffed, pressing a hand against the glass when a bright colored fish whizzed past, catching his attention. 

"Hmm," hummed the handsome man, seeming to sidle up beside Dipper. But that might have just been Dipper's wishful thinking, that the man's slight movement to move beside him was on purpose. "Do people also tell you that you're ten times cuter than your great uncle?"

Startled, Dipper looked over at Bill, a look of confusion clouding his face. Though the confusion was evidently mixed in with flusteredness, a warm feeling that caused the other man to chuckle. "Wha- y- you- I- wha-?"

"Well, I do mean that Stanford Pines is a hundred times older than you," Bill continued, as if Dipper's stuttering had never happened, practically humming to himself. "But I bet even at your age, Stanford Pines can't be as cute as someone like you, am I right or am I right? Aren't you the cutest!" he cooed, swinging his head to face Dipper with a look that made Dipper feel just utterly embarrassed. 

"I'm- I'm not cute!" Dipper argued. But even then, he knew his argument was useless. 

"I'm sure you are," Bill purred, grinning at him in a way that made Dipper want to punch him straight in the nose just so he could shut the hell up. "But hey Pine Tree, how 'bout we get out of here and come look at the jellyfishes in the other exhibit, hmm?"

"Why are you calling me Pine Tree?" Dipper asked him instead, exasperated like a tired mom running around looking for their children at the grocery store. It didn't even comprehend to him yet that this handsome man he was almost drooling for was basically asking him out on a damn date of some sorts. 

"You look like a Pine Tree to me, Pine Tree!" chirped Bill, his goofy grin still on his face. "And plus, your shirt is embroidered with a pine tree." At this, Dipper looked down at his own shirt, which was indeed stitched in with a blue pine tree. That was the last time he was going to let Mabel stitch up his clothes. 

"So was that a yes or what, Pine Tree?"

"Wha- huh?" Dipper looked up from his shirt, to lock eyes with Bill. Bill, still as amused by every situation ever, looked back at Dipper with an innocent smile that lit up his entire face. Dipper fought back a smile of his own. Oh for God's sake. What kind of person's smile was so contagious that it almost made him smile of all people? 

"Do you want to keep catching Pokemon with me here or look at the jellyfishes next door, because both are fine with me, as long as you're there!" Bill explained happily. 

A hyperactive adult with a not-so-hyperactive-and-killjoy adult. Why on earth would Bill want him around? To be his tour guide?

Seeing the obvious question in Dipper's features, Bill answered it for him. "You're intriguing, kid. It would be nice to get to know ya better, you know?"

"And me of all people because...?" He trailed off, spinning his fingers around in a gesture to keep Bill talking. 

"Easy! I would gladly answer that to you, but I'm afraid I can't!" Bill told him, almost merrily. The guy's optimism could almost top Mabel's, and Dipper found that a little...unbelievable, to say the least. "So, yes to going to the jellyfishes or no? I need an answer here!" 

"Well, um, sure, I guess..." Dipper mumbled unsurely. He was surprised, more than anything, but a hundred times more confused. Don't get him wrong, he was more than happy to be talking to this guy here, but he found the whole situation just- you know, odd. There were a hundred other people in this aquarium but Bill decided to talk to him and ask him to accompany him at the jellyfish exhibit. 

"Great, let's go then!"

"Wait, right n-?"

Not waiting for him to finish his sentence, Bill took Dipper's wrist and tugged him close, basically speed-walking to the next exhibit without speaking another word. The whole while, Dipper was dragged by his arm, no matter how much he tugged back to gain back control. Bill would just make a slightly annoyed grunt, then tug him harder, almost making Dipper face-plant the ground from the force of it. But even with being man-handled, Dipper could tell Bill was trying his hardest to be gentle with him. 

"Hey, did you know there's a jellyfish called lion's mane jellyfish here? I wanna see it!" Bill told him, pulling him along even faster the closer they got into the exhibit. They almost ran over a little girl on the way, in which Dipper had to apologize for as they whizzed past. Bill only grunted, much to the brunet's annoyance. 

"Well, the cyanea capillata are the biggest jellyfish species known to us so far, and I guess they're-" said Dipper with a thoughtful look. 

"Mhm, and I'm gonna go see the moon jellyfish with you," Bill cut off, a small smirk playing on his lips.

"You mean the aurelia aurita," Dipper corrected.  

"Does it honestly really matter, Pine Tree?" Bill rolled his eyes at Dipper's nerdiness for fish species. "I'm trying to be romantic here, sheesh! I didn't clear out the whole exhibit for you just to keep correcting me on what I call the damn jelly-things."

"I'm a marine biologist major, it's how I-" Dipper began wryly. Then Bill's words crashed his thought process, and he suddenly became a stuttering mess of a person. "R- romantic? I thought you just- how did you clear- I mean I just met you and- and I thought you-" he stammered. 

"It's funny how dumb you are," Bill crooned. He gave Dipper's wrist a tight squeeze, not enough to hurt, but just enough that Dipper knew he was trying to catch his attention. "Are you seriously not catching up to me yet? And here I am thinking that you were supposed to be like Fordsy!" His tone took on a playful scolding tone, one that made Dipper grind his teeth together in petty annoyance. 

Dipper, about to snap a response about just meeting Bill back there two minutes ago, almost crashed into a business man, right before Bill pulled him directly to his side, narrowly missing the body. With his cheek pressed against Bill's warm chest, Dipper felt heat rushing to his head. His heart throbbed painfully in his ears, the sounds of the busy aquarium no longer there. But wait, his steady heartbeat wasn't in sync with the fast, rapid noise in his ear. Was that Bill's-?

"And clumsy too," Bill hummed, gently untangling Dipper away from his body as if it didn't faze him in the slightest. And it probably didn't. "Man, they sure picked someone special, am I right?" He guffawed at his own words, as if the meaning behind it was the funniest thing he had ever heard. 

"Someone special? Bill, what the hell are you-?" Dipper gave his companion a confusing look. 

"My heart, I mean," Bill explained, his words now coming out as a jumble. He grinned apologetically at Dipper, his death grip on the brunet's wrist just loosening by a bit. "Soyouwannacomewatchthefishwithmeandmakeoutorwhat?"

"Repeat what you said, please," Dipper asked him. He made a face, giving Bill a slightly concerned look. He didn't catch even a single word from that guy's mouth. "And why are you sweating?"

"It's hot in here!" Bill exclaimed, huffing out a laugh. But it sounded a little forced, but Dipper shook the feeling off. And he didn't bother pointing out that the air conditioner was running and almost everyone was wearing a jacket. 

Something felt a little reversed here. 

Shouldn't Dipper be the nervous awkward guy and Bill being the somewhat hesitant bastard?

And shouldn't Dipper be the one screaming like a little girl as a sea lion popped its head over and falling over from the slipperiness of the floor?

Because Bill was definitely the one who took his place. 

Bill let go of his wrist just in time for him to fall by himself, falling right on his butt. A sea lion just bumped its head against the tank in the dark hallway they were in, and it seemed to laugh as Bill went down screaming, the man's yell of surprise echoing through the walls of the exhibit. 

Dipper, feeling the laughter bubble up in his throat, leaned against the tank behind him, pursing his lips to keep from laughing. 

But then Bill tried to get up again, cursing under his breath as he rubbed his sore ass, before falling down, one more time. It triggered Dipper to laugh, the force of it causing his shoulders to shake. 

Bill looked up at him, shakily getting up (successfully, for once) and giving Dipper a glare that told him to stop laughing. 

So Dipper tried. And the key word here was of course, _tried_. 

When his laugh threatened to come again when Bill made a face at the sea lion flicking its tail at him, he clamped a hand over his mouth, trying to stop it. But instead of stifling the laugh that was coming out, it instead made him snort like Mabel's pet pig. It echoed through the walls, much to his horror. 

He removed his hand from his mouth, Bill watching him with a quirk of the lips. "That wasn't me," he said quickly. "That was someone el-"

"No one's here except us, Pine Tree," Bill reminded him.

"Wha-" Dipper looked around in alarm, eyes flickering around for a sign of someone in this sea lion exhibit. But no one was, and he couldn't tell if he preferred that over having at least one person in here. "How? What? I thought-"

"Calm it, Pine Tree," Bill laughed. His eyes twinkled in a way that could rub anyone in the wrong way, especially Dipper. There were something in them that made the brunet a little uncomfortable, like a happy lift that could belong to anyone. Except it was laced with something like...desire. One that someone shouldn't even have on a first date. If this was even a first date. Dipper didn't even ask, and he was too afraid by this point. 

"Wh- why is no one here?" Dipper stammered. He tried his best to move backward again, as casually as he could, but nothing was behind him but glass. He gripped his messenger bag with a death grip, his other hand slipping into his pocket, where his phone laid. One call to Mabel, then she'd know what to do.

"No one's here because I asked them to," Bill explained, his voice coated with giddiness. He looked at one of the tanks beside Dipper, smiling softly when a sea lion did a flip in the water, as if they were showing off to Bill. "Which, by the way, I'll explain why later! But right now-"

"Why did you ask them to leave?" Dipper demanded. He tried not to sound too demanding, in case Bill knew he was catching on to something and he acted quickly. But the panic in his voice was evident, even with the thrumming in his ears. No one would just ask him to leave somewhere without a reason, might as well somewhere dark and cornered and trapped...

Bill's face, instead of turning stone cold and angry as Dipper expected, softened. He looked at Dipper, who stood frozen against the glass, barely moving for the life of him. His eyes flickered to his hand, still clenched inside his pocket, with the outline of the phone visible. Realizing what that meant, his mouth formed a little 'o' of surprise, eyes large and brows shot up high. 

He stepped forward, causing Dipper to stiffen even more, his breath catching in his throat. Then he stepped back, mildly surprised by the brunet's reaction. "Pine Tree, I'm not going to-" Bill began, a slight edge of horror to his voice.  

His words were cut off when a splash cut through the air. His eyes briefly flickered up from where Dipper was, a look of panic coming over his face. Before he could speak, Dipper felt a coldness come through his body, his clothes suddenly sticking to his body. 

He coughed, sputtering out a small amount of water that came up his nose, blinking and shaking his head vigorously. Droplets of water spread everywhere, coating the cement underneath them darkly. His body felt cold and wet, thanks to the water that the sea lion had unintentionally let out over the lip of the glass.

He didn't mind being doused as much, since he had a fresh pair in his water-proof clothes in his messenger bag. And it wasn't like it was the sea lion's fault! 

Bill, on the other hand, began acting like it _was_ the sea lion's fault. 

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?!" he bellowed, taking a step forward. He grabbed Dipper by the collar, pulling the boy back behind him in a surprisingly gentle way. Dipper peeked from behind the man's shoulder, squeaking under his breath about what was wrong, but Bill paid him no heed. 

"What in the world was that, you incompetent orphan with no morals and parents!" Bill yelled, jabbing a finger at, you guessed it, the same sea lion that doused Dipper in shivering cold water. Dipper couldn't help but cringe back at Bill's words. What person would yell at a sea lion?

"What would your mom say to you doing that, huh?" Bill scolded, his voice dangerously calm. "She didn't die in that oil spill and save you just so you could waddle away from your problems!"

The sea lion, seeming oblivious to Bill's words, just stared blankly back with dark, tired eyes. Dipper, if he didn't know that sea lions could possess such emotions, would have thought the sea mammal was ashamed of itself. 

"Don't you dare look at me like that, you sorry excuse for killer whale bait!" Bill snapped. Dipper could've sworn he saw the animal flinch. Jabbing his finger more profusely, Bill went on. "You better apologize to him right now, or else I'm going to have your fish supply cut!"

But the sea lion simply stared. 

"Bill, sea lions can't understand you talking like that. Just give it a re-" Dipper told him, exasperated.

"PERCY!" Bill thundered. His voice was so loud that Dipper saw every sea mammal in the tanks freeze up, the word still echoing through the empty hall like there was more than one person speaking. Dipper winced.

"Apologize," Bill snarled. Dipper was glad he couldn't see Bill's expression from where he was. The sea lion, still stubborn as ever, did not move. But he hung his head, as if he really was in shame. "Percy, _now_! I'm going to take all of our anchovies right this instant if you don't goddamn apologize and I will make sure you'll never get any ever again!" The threat sounded so real that Dipper himself stepped back, almost certain that if he breathed wrong, Bill would yell him as well.

What kind of person had this much power over a sea lion, so much so that the said mammal looked up, startled and doing exactly what he wanted?

The sea lion, finally snapping from Bill's threat, lifted his head to look at Bill with sad, dark eyes. His snout twitched a little, like he was trying to say something. Then the sea lion's attention was on Dipper and the two stared each other down for a good moment. Then the animal opened his mouth, bubbles coming out of it with a muffled bark that sounded much like a sad lament. 

Then the sea lion was gone, swimming away like he didn't want to face Bill any longer than he had to. 

Dipper was forced into stunned silence, blinking slowly while he watched the sea lion drift away to the little island at the surface. Bill didn't speak either, rubbing one hand over one side of his face tiredly. Then Bill spoke, grumbling, "Sea lions. They never do anything right."

He wanted to ask, "How did you do that?" in pure curiosity and stunned awe, but it came out as, "You named the sea lion Percy?" Meet Dipper Pines, the guy who prioritizes naming sea lions over the mystery of taming them. 

"No, his name was already Percy. His friend over there he just fin-slapped is named Frank." 

"And how the hell did you know that?" Dipper asked in disbelief. 

Bill turned to face him, just slightly. He ran a hand through his hair, looking a little more serious than he seemed before, naming fishes after Pokemon and whatnot. It was a little scary, but Dipper wasn't about to admit that. 

"I thought it was obvious," Bill told him. He nodded at the golden plate beside the sea lion's tank, a sign that told readers that the sea lions inside this particular tank were named Percy, Frank, and Hazel respectively. 

Dipper rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, trying not to let it show on his face. He coughed, trying to switch the subject as fast as he could. But Bill had already did it for him, the moment Dipper had cleared his throat. 

His eyes were on Dipper in a split second, brows pulled together in worry. "Jeez, the water must be cold, huh?" Bill said softly. His concerned voice startled Dipper for a moment, and by the time Dipper had caught up to what he was saying, Bill was already on a roll. "Are you sick? Do you feel dizzy? There's a clinic down the hall, I can help you get there. There's also a souvenir shop down the east wing, I can run down there and get you some clothes, then-"

"Bill, I'm fine, I'm fine," Dipper waved off. He shrugged the shoulder that held his messenger bag. "I have clothes in my bag. I just need a bathroom to change in and I'll be ready to go."

"Oh." Bill's face suddenly lit up. "I can take you to the nearest one, if you want."

"That would be great, actually. I don't have a map around here," Dipper admitted, smiling in thanks. 

Before he knew it, Bill had grabbed his wrist, but this time with a gentle grip. The man tugged Dipper closer, walking to the direction of the bathrooms. It wasn't even far away, and was in sight the moment Dipper was turned around to the direction they needed to go. But when he saw the sign, he yelped. 

"Bill, that's the staff bathroom, we can't just-" Dipper rushed out. He tried to tug out of Bill's grip, but the man was too stubborn. He wondered if the sea lion and this guy were related, and the thought alone almost ensured that he didn't hear Bill's words. 

"Yes we can," Bill assured him. He didn't bothering looking over his shoulder to look at Dipper. "They'll understand if we tell them that one of their sea lions in captivity splashed a visitor with no clothes or help provided. They have a right to open that place up, or else they could get fired for refusing comfort for their guests."

"You...how did you know that?" Dipper asked him in mild surprise. 

"Hey, I'm not as dumb as I lead you on, Pine Tree. I know things!" Bill chirped, his happy-go-lucky carefree personality coming back over the surface. 

They got there within a blink of an eye. In front of them was a large door with a large sign that said 'STAFF BATHROOM: DO NOT ENTER'. But Bill, assuring Dipper for the last time that they can't get in trouble, pushed open the door and lead him inside. 

Bill locked the door behind him with a dull click, opening the lights to the bathroom. It was just a small room, with a toilet to their right and a sink directly in front of them. They were almost squished inside, but it was better than nothing.

Dipper brought up his messenger bag to the sink edge, opening the flap and rummaging through it with a watchful eye for his clothes. He knew bringing clothes to an aquarium would be handy, despite listening to Mabel's nagging words of "It'll be fine!" 

When he finally located his fresh pair, he pulled out in victory, holding up a white shirt, shorts, and some underwear. Sadly, no socks, but he could manage. "Aha! Now lemme just-" 

Realizing that someone was else was close to him, and was definitely going to watch him change, Dipper's cheeks warmed, tingling like they always did when he was flustered. He looked over at Bill, who was watching him expectantly, arms crossed in front of him. "Are you going to...?" He trailed off, making a gesture with a hand, eyebrow lifted in question. 

Bill's eyes snapped awake, body jerking up. A small blush crept on the man's cheeks, but it could have just been Dipper's imagination. "OH! Right, right! Uh, sorry, I forgot you'd feel weird about that so I'll just uh...ah..." Bill babbled, complying to Dipper's wishes and turning right around. 

Dipper, not wanting to keep Bill waiting and wanting to be teased about changing slowly like Mabel always does, stripped himself of his clothing. He put the wet clothing in the sink to let it drain down, shoving his fresh clothes onto his body soon after. 

He messed up his hair, combing his fingers through it to get the rest of the water out. When he saw Bill's back still turned to him, not a peep coming out of the man's mouth, he cleared his throat. "I'm uh, done dressing up."

Bill grunted, pivoting around to face him. "Thank God, I was uncomfortable pressed against the wall like that. Do you even know how small it feels in here?!" he complained. "Jeez, it was like-" Bill's eyes widened, but Dipper couldn't understand why.

 "-being...compressed...against a..." Bill mumbled slowly, his words getting quieter and quieter as he kept talking. His face was one of surprise, and maybe even shock if Dipper were to put his mind to it. Dipper, self-consciously, dropped his hand away from his hair, letting it swing by his side.  

"What? You okay, dude? You look like you're going to be sick, Bill," Dipper asked in concern. The other man's face really made him look a little pale, like he needed to throw up. 

"Wha- hmm? What?" Bill stammered, eyes that were drifting down Dipper's body to look back up at him. Dipper, a little uncomfortable, took the bag from the sink to let it hang over his shoulder again. 

"I said, are you okay?" Dipper answered slowly, giving Bill a weird look. "What are you looking at?"

"Noth- nothing! Just uh- ah, got a little distracted. Sorry. You were saying?" Bill babbled, words coming of his mouth faster than Dipper thought he could comprehend. 

Seeing that Bill's eyes kept drifting downward, Dipper looked down at himself. A shirt, some shorts, and his still-wet shoes. What was so distracting about that?

Oh, right. With his body still not properly dried off, his shirt clung to his chest, his shorts were well, shorts, and his hair was beyond messy. Look at what he was looking at before, which were a heavy jacket and jeans, and you'd see why Bill was staring. 

Thinking that Bill was judging him beyond measure, Dipper cleared his throat, face turning pink. "Are- aren't we supposed to go to the jellyfishes or what, Bill? I have to go back to my sister soon."

"Right, right!" Bill agreed, almost mindlessly. He looked up at Dipper again, a small smile playing on his lips. "But honestly, I don't think you have to go back to your sister so soon. I'm sure she'd understand if you were with me."

"She doesn't even know you," Dipper snorted. He shook his hair, just one last time in case it would drip all over the aquarium floors instead of in the bathroom. "What makes you so sure she would even approve of you?" he challenged. He didn't know why exactly he was challenging him, but maybe it was due to the fact that Bill was staring at him in a way he couldn't place. 

"I just know," Bill chirped. "Come on. Let me take you to the jellyfishes. I have a feeling you'll enjoy it there." 

"How can you tell?"

"A little star told me," Bill answered simply. He didn't elaborate on anything else, instead smiling at Dipper in a way that made the brunet feel funny inside.

And as if a magnetic pull was coaxing at Dipper from his very navel to his heart, the brunet stepped forward, towards the man who was smiling at him like Dipper was his whole world.

But due to the water on the ground, and the goddamn slippery shoes on his feet, Dipper almost fell face first on the floor.

Key word; almost.

Thankfully, Bill caught him right on time, arms coming around Dipper protectively. He grunted, forcing Dipper up to his feet.

But unlike other sensible people, who would let him go while asking if he was okay, Bill simply held onto him tighter, like the stubborn man he was. And unlike other people, who would kindly ask the other to let them go, Dipper let him hold on. Unlike other people, who would pull away by now from the embarrassment, they just held onto each other.

Dipper, something coming over him, buried his face in Bill's chest, breathing the man in almost greedily. Bill smelled a lot like saltwater and professional perfume, a combo Dipper never thought would mix well together. But Bill was living proof that it indeed mixed well, and Dipper couldn't have enough of him.

Again, the thrumming in his ears returned, sounding like beating drums that would soon take over his senses. And again, Dipper had thought it was himself, his heart fluttering madly in his chest from being so close to someone else, to someone who he had thought would assault him not even a couple moments ago.

But the fluttering, the mad beat that belonged to a crazed, needy heart was Bill.

Dipper closed his eyes. For a moment, he wanted to pretend that Bill's heart beat only for him, as greedy as that sounded. Sure, they had only met not even a couple hours ago, but honestly, love had no time.

Dipper's breath almost hitched in his own chest. Bill was just a crazy guy who he called hot. Bill was just an unrequited crush. Bill was just Bill and he was just Dipper. Nothing else. Nothing was happening between them, Bill was just being kind to him, Bill didn't like him enough, and-

"Did anyone ever tell you," Bill murmured, cutting off Dipper's train of thought. His words rumbled in his chest, Dipper feeling every vibration and loving every moment of it. He kept his eyes closed. He wanted them closed, just for a little while, to pretend.

"That you look like the most beautiful person in this godforsaken planet when you smile?"

Dipper's heart stopped beating in his chest. He tensed up, without meaning to. His arms, the ones left abandoned by his sides, clenched up, like they always did when he got into a panic.

And the thrumming by his ear, the one who he finally realized was Bill, had stopped as well. He could feel the man tense up underneath him when Dipper kept quiet.

"I'm-" Bill cleared his throat, that one single word strained and weak. He pushed Dipper away, gently. Dipper almost whined, like a little kid being rejected candy in the supermarket, but kept his mouth shut to prevent any more stupid comments. Dipper looked up at him, almost widely.

And the look of hopefulness only caused Bill to look away, the man's jaw clenched. "Sorry, I didn't know what I was thinking," Bill murmured. Up close, Dipper could see every feature of the man's face. Especially the redness on his cheeks, a sign of embarrassment that probably hadn't shown up in a very long time, considering how flustered and awkward Bill was in this situation. "I...could bring you back to your sister, if you want. I-"

"No," Dipper told him.

Bill frowned at him. "No?"

"No," Dipper confirmed. Up this close, he could see Bill's lips, just a few inches away, just inviting him to- he blinked to clear the thoughts. Just being called beautiful wasn't enough to be kissed. Bill probably said it to be nice, or just to- you know, see how Dipper would react. Dipper almost grimaced. He had seen that in action with too many people with his twin. Too many liars, and too many lies.

"Why not? I thought you said-?" Bill asked in confusion.

"I said later, not now." Dipper rolled his eyes at Bill's stupidity. "I want to visit the jellyfishes," he continued, keeping Bill's gaze in place. He almost looked away, but kept it firm, to show Bill that he was being serious. "And I want to visit them with you."

Bill smiled softly at him, almost wistfully.

And before any of them could process what just happened, Bill leaned in and kissed him on the forehead, a lingering kiss that stayed a little too long. But Dipper didn't mind it. Not at all.

"You'll love them, Pine Tree!" Bill grinned. His bipolar behavior was a little comical to witness, especially when Bill began bouncing on the balls of his feet in excitement.

"Come on, come on! They might turn off the lights soon to save power, and I really want you to see them in the lighting, it's really-!"

Bill pushed open the door behind him, stepping out with his hand entwined carefully with Dipper's. Not the wrist, not the forearm, but the actual hand and Dipper could feel his fingers feeling like jelly in Bill's.

In front of them stood two young kids, about high school age. They were in the middle of a conversation, an argument maybe, but they turned to look at Dipper and Bill when they emerged. Their faces were one of complete shock and surprise, eyes large as the saucers from Mabel's weird collection in her room.

Dipper looked at Bill, a well-dressed man who had his blazer crumpled and distorted, with his hair just as messy. Then he looked at himself, the water still on his face and clothes to make him look maybe just a tad bit sweaty. His clothes were weirdly put on, like he rushed to get them on (which honestly did happen).

It didn't take a genius for what those kids thought had happened in that tiny cramped bathroom.

But instead of yelling for security or telling them they would rot in hell, as most people would have done, the boy turned to look at his friend, a knowing look on his face that made the girl glare at him in return.

"See? I told you that having sex in the bathrooms were aloud!" the boy argued.

"You idiot fool!" the girl yelled, backhand slapping her friend. "They did that illegally and could get sentenced to jail if we told them- which, by the way, we're not, you two are a cute couple, just saying-" She directed the last sentence to them, "-and we're not having sex in one of those bathrooms!"

"Behind the abandoned exhibit then?" the boy asked, more hopeful than anything else.

"I hate you," the girl deadpanned. But even with her words, she walked away, hand in hand with her friend. She never answered the question.

Bill turned to look at Dipper, a little amused smirk playing on his lips. "You know, I think the funny thing here-" Bill drawled, taking a step toward Dipper. Letting out a squeak of surprise, Dipper was pinned aainst the wall, lips brushing against his neck. He shivered, body going still. "-is that we probably scored someone a time of their life by letting them think we had our time of our lives." His voice was nothing but a purr by this point.

"And so?" Dipper asked, unsure of how to proceed with this situation. He clenched his fists by his side when Bill's lips came down, trailing his neck in a way that just made him feel like he was already half way to heaven.

Damn it. Hormones. It didn't help that the guy doing this to him was extremely, extremely hot.

"Why, thank you!" Bill exclaimed, removing his head from Dipper's neck to give Dipper a grin of thanks.

His words reeled in his head, leading Dipper to wonder what on earth Bill was thanking, before it clicked in his head and he stared at Bill in horror. "I- I said that out loud?"

"Sure you did," Bill purred, a finger coming under Dipper's chin to tilt it upwards. His other arm supported his weight right beside Dipper's head, keeping them close together either only a couple inches away from each other's faces. "I knew you thought I was hot when I heard you and Shooting Star whisper behind my back, but damn, kid. I'm flattered."

"I- I was just-" Dipper stammered.

"Oh save it for bed, Pine Tree. I want to show you a better time of your life," Bill drawled, his face threatening to tilt over and kiss him. Dipper could practically feel his breath on his face, fanning him with warm minty breath that made him self conscious of how his breath smelled itself. Bill paused, watching Dipper with a gaze that finally, finally made the brunet shudder. And in return, Bill's eyes dilated.

He felt Bill's hand place itself firmly on his hip, sliding down to his thigh then back up again in a slow rhythm that made Dipper a little crazy.

And right when Dipper was about to close the gap between them, Bill snaked his whole arm around Dipper's waist and pulled Dipper to his chest, turning them around to face the other exhibit doors in sight.

"And the greatest time in your life will be at this very aquarium!" Bill announced proudly.

**************

"This is singly the weirdest day of my entire life," Dipper announced.

"You mean the best?" Bill said innocently, bopping the balloon on a stick in his hand to Dipper's nose.

"That too," Dipper sighed. But he smiled a little.

Yes, it was indeed the best day of his entire life. At least, one in a long time. College was all about work, work, and more work nowadays, meaning that Dipper didn't have time to have fun. But here he was, researching fish they came across while he had fun with a person who he never would have thought he would share it with.

After they watched the jellyfish and the exotic lights that came with it, Dipper and Bill walked to next exhibit over, a penguin pit where you could pay to feed them. Sadly, the price was beyond Dipper's range, and he almost walked away in disappointment. But seeing the sadness in Dipper's eyes, Bill automatically took action, slamming a two hundred bill on the counter and ordering two whole buckets of fish to feed. When the employees saw him, they almost rejected his request for some unknown reason that fathomed even Dipper, but after Bill insisted and did some light threatening Dipper was too far away to hear, they gave them their fish.

In the pit, all the penguins seemed to love Dipper to pieces. Even when Bill had a whole bucket of fish to hand out, Dipper only had to hold out one to have a whole army of cute little quacking penguins to waddle over to him. With the penguins piled so close to him, Dippee sketched every penguin, all the way down to how their teeth looked like nightmares from hell. To keep them occupied, Dipper just had to throw a single fish on the ground in front of him while Bill struggled to get them over to him.

Bill told him he was cheating. Dipper told him to stick it up his ass.

Which Bill had smiled and crooned, "Gladly. I might need to go a little slow first though."

Dipper had never felt so satisfied throwing fish at someone's face to have fifty penguins charge at them at neck-breaking speed.

After that, Bill took him to a fish spa. When Bill told him, Dipper was a little confused. What the hell was a fish spa? At first, he had thought it was a metaphor of some sorts, but the wasn't until he was told to take off his shoes and dip his feet in the tiny pool did Dipper almost screech and try to run out of there faster than Sonic ever did in any of his old video game discs.

It took Bill's quiet coaxing and massaging of his own to get Dipper to ease into the water slowly, the tiny fishes coming over to nibble at his feet. Dipper squeezed his eyes shut at the feeling of the little bites, but he soon wrenched his eyes open to watch Bill giggle and smile at the foreign feeling as well as a way of coping with his fear. All the while, Dipper had wrote in his notebook about the feeling and process of dead skin being eaten.

After that, they went on a boat with an employee and went whale watching. There, Bill jokingly did whale calls, to try and "hurry up their butts here so a very dedicated student could take pictures". In the end, his whale calling mixed in with Dipper's laughter and the employee's nagging brought them a whale to the surface. Bill helped him take the pictures by holding Dipper by the waist while Dipper snapped pictures with his phone.

Then they watched a bird show (which was weird for an aquarium) where Dipper volunteered and got to hold a bird and have a falcon on his hand. Then they watched a sea lion show with Percy and Frank in them, where at one point the sea lions had to "pick" their volunteer by nosing a beach ball into the audience. It landed right between Dipper and Bill, and Bill mumbled under his breath that the fucker did it on purpose. Unable to choose between them, the trainors brought them both down with Bill pulling them aside to whisper something before they nodded in understanding. There, they were the highlight of the day by being chased by Percy and Frank the whole day.

After that, they made wishes at a well, Bill telling him a story about how this very well was a monument from an old pirate at the bottom of the marianas trench. When asked about what he had wished, considering that Bill had taken a whole quiet moment, Bill smiled at him and answered, "I wished for you."

Then they watched the ocean together while Bill told him about every sea animal ever found in that very lake, including some legend about something called the Gobblewonker.

Then they watched the sun go down. Then shared a plate of food at the food court and fed each other to tease the other as some game. Then they looked back at the aquarium where they met and kept playing that game of calling every fish a Pokemon. Then they went to the starfish exhibit and took goofy pictures for the hell of it while they held onto the tiny creatures. At one point when a person volunteered to take a picture for them holding a pink starfish together, Dipper was bold enough to place a kiss on Bill's cheek. The man's expression alone was more than enough for him to keep the picture.

Maybe it was on purpose or not, but Bill slowly helped him get everything ready for his thesis. From his stories to the facts about the fishes here that Dipper never knew, Dipper had a feeling that his professor would love his arguments and experience.

"You know, I never got to thank you," Dipper said into the darkness.

"For what?"

"For letting me be myself for once." Shaking his head, Dipper pressed a hand against the glass. They were at the shark tanks, watching sharks drift by slowly. They were here because Dipper wanted to take pictures of their teeth, for the last piece of his papers. "And while I got to have fun, you helped me with my thesis."

Dipper stared in awe as a tiger shark floated past, almost showing teeth. Almost.

Without even realizing it, Bill had sidled up beside him, smiling softly at the brunet. Not at the tank, but at him. All at him.

"What?" Dipper asked, glancing at Bill when he caught the man's gaze.

"Nothing," Bill answered simply with a shrug. But the way he was smiling at Dipper, his dark eyes reflecting the wonder in them- it all made Dipper's stomach flutter with butterflies, as cheesy as it sounded. "You just...look really...intriguing when you're in awe."

Bill let out a small chuckle, head turning to the shark that Dipper was looking at. "Maybe I should bring you to aquariums more. If you want," he added.

"I'd love that," Dipper told him. "More than anything in the world, actually. Especially with you, it's...a lot more fun, I guess."

"I'm glad you think so," hummed the handsome man. His eyes came back to Dipper, as it always did. It was like he found Dipper's reactions more endearing than the fish themselves. "Because I was wondering if you'd like to go on a date with me Tuesday night at eight. A formal one at a diner I found across this aquarium. It's been...a great pleasure getting to know you as a friend. I'd love to be more than that, if you're willing to." His eyes never left Dipper's as he said this, his words quiet and nervous if you were to put your mind to it.

"Bill, I-" Dipper's throat closed up. This whole time, Bill had wanted...?

God. If he had known sooner...

"Bill, I'd love to. You- you seriously have no idea," Dipper whispered, finally turning his head to look at Bill. And he smiled, the same one that Bill had called beautiful.

And Bill smiled back, one of relief and happiness. "Good. If you were to say no, I'd have to cancel everything and waste three thousand dollars for something you rejected."

"Is this your way of making me feel bad because it's kinda working, you know."

Bill laughed, not being able to resist himself anymore. He brought Dipper to his chest by the waist, propping his chin on Dipper's head. "Remind me again on why you wanted to see these sharks so bad."

"Shark teeth. I need them," Dipper sighed into his chest. "I know I could just get them off the Internet but my professor gives extra credit for experiencing things.

"You know that would be impossible, right? We'd need to feed them to see their teeth for even a moment," Bill murmured into his hair.

"I know, I know. We'll just wait until someone comes by to feed them and then-"

"We need a camera too. And I wanna pet the shark." Bill's tone made him sound like a five year-old, making Dipper laugh a little.

"No. As much as I want you to die, no," Dipper told him.

Then Bill's words finally processed in his head.

Swearing, Dipper pushed himself gently away from Bill's chest. He forgot that he left his phone in his messenger bag at the food court when they briefly bumped into Mabel. And he completely forgot to ask for Mabel's camera too. God, he was an idiot.

"Great," he grumbled, turning on a heel to face the sharks again. He peered at them for any sign of their bared teeth, but none of them were willing. "Just great. Now what am I supposed to do? I don't even have a photographic memory and it won't even help in this situation because my professor won't even believe me without pictures! What am I going to do no-?"

He turned around, facing to where Bill was. But he wasn't there. Dipper did a full 360. Still not there.

"Aaand, he's gone," Dipper said to himself. His voice echoed through the walls, mocking him. No one was here. In fact, everywhere they went, no one was there except for employees and occasionally an old lady or two. The only time they had met someone their age was Mabel at the food court, but even then she seemed jumpy and wanted out of there as soon as possible. Every time Dipper had questioned it, Bill always answered with, "I'll tell you later."

Grunting, Dipper faced the sharks again. If Bill abandoned him to go to the bathroom, he was going to return sooner or later.

But Bill was already in front of him.

"Oh. Bill. Hello," Dipper mumbled under his breath.

But Bill was wearing a scuba diver suit, and was quickly approaching a shark. A tiger shark. With meat in his hands. And pliers.

"Bill are you in the-?! _BILL_!"

**************

"I said I was sorry!"

"Sorry doesn't cut it!"

"Pine Tree-"

"Are you kidding me right now?!" Dipper screamed. He threw his arms up in the air in frustration, pacing in front of Bill who sat on the bench, drying his hair off with a towel draped around his shoulders. "Bill, why would you even steal a scuba diver suit?! And pliers?! Why would you even plan to take out a shark tooth?! What the hell!"

"You said you needed one," Bill mumbled, eyes averting from Dipper's angry gaze.

"That doesn't mean you have to come into the stupid tank and take one! Bill, what were you thinking?! You could have gotten us both suspended! What do you think my professor is going to say if he found out that I got suspended from the fucking aquarium?! What do you think it'll do for my career? My future jobs? My-?"

"Chill, Pine Tree," Bill said with a roll of his eyes. Dipper wanted to seriously punch him straight in the nose. "It's not as bad as you think."

"Not as bad?! Bill, even Percy is agreeing with me!" Dipper screeched, pointing at the sea lion swimming about beside Dipper like he was taking the brunet's side in this. What other perfect place was there to yell at your kind-of-boyfriend-now other than the sea lion exhibit?

"He just smells fish on you from the penguin feeding," Bill answered simply. "Dipper, just calm down and let me-"

"Let you what? Ruin my chances of being a fully functional adult? Because of you, I might never become that! They're going to find that footage of you, I know it, and-" Dipper rambled on.

"They found it."

Dipper's blood ran cold. He stopped dead in front of Bill, lowering his arms from being thrown around everywhere to give Bill a horrified look. "Wha- what?"

"They found it the moment I came into the tank," Bill said. He stood up from his seat on the bench, striding over to Dipper with a fire in his eyes that made Dipper feel less like the flame and more like the coals.

"And guess what? They. Don't. Care."

"What do you mean they don't care? Of course they do! They're probably calling the police right now, they're going to blame me too for not telling them and- and-" Dipper rushed out, voice coated and dipped in panic.

"They don't care," Bill cut off slowly, like he was speaking to a child. He was directly in front of Dipper by this point, stopping there to look at him with a look that made Dipper shut up. "They don't care because I told them and they were the ones that gave me the suit and pliers."

Dipper stayed in a stunned silence for a good moment.

"Why? Why would they do that? That's-?" Dipper stammered.

"Because," Bill cut off, his tone sharp. He lowered his head a little, the fire in his eyes going out just a little, just for him. "Because they can never say no to the man who can get them fired in a snap of the fingers," Bill murmured.

"You..." Dipper trailed off. His mind worked overtime to make sense of what Bill was trying to say, but every word would disappear and disintegrate in his brain.

"Dipper Pines," Bill sighed, his hands coming up to grip each of his shoulders. He squeezed Dipper's shoulders firmly, but Dipper had a feeling that it was to keep him still, so he wouldn't run away. "This whole time, I wanted to tell you why I had so much power over this entire place and why no one was here to bother us. But I didn't want you to run away after what I can do. I didn't want that."

Bill frowned at him, just slightly so that the frown was almost nonexistent. But by this point, Dipper could pinpoint every emotion the other had. "I didn't want to tell you because I wanted to see if you would like me for who I really was, not what I did," Bill said, his words still slow and steady.

"Then...who are you?" Dipper croaked out.

Instead of answering, Bill leaned in, his forehead pressed against Dipper's. His lips brushed up against his, just faintly enough that Dipper could feel its presence.

"How nice would it be to put on a resume..." Bill trailed off, his hands sliding under to grip Dipper's hips, pulling the brunet close. "...to date the CEO of every aquatic branch in North America?"

Startled, Dipper pushed him away. His heart started pounding heavily in his chest by Bill's words, eyes wide. It was him. It was him that day in the meeting. It was him?

"It's you," Dipper said in a hushed tone. "You- you-"

Silently, Bill pulled out something from his back pocket. He gestured for Dipper's hand, in which Dipper had hesitantly held out.

Bill placed a shark tooth necklace on his palm.

Startled by the necklace, Dipper almost dropped it. "You actually-?!" Dipper yelped.

"No, no of course not. I only came in that shark tank to impress you," Bill laughed. "That's a tiger shark tooth passed from CEO to CEO. It's a tradition. But I think you'd love it more than I would."

"Bill-"

"Don't," Bill sighed. "I've kept secrets from you, Dipper. One of them not telling you that I've had a crush on you for a very long time. Your sister is my company's logo artist, you know. She brought you along to a meeting one day, in which you were completely bored out of your mind because it was for artists, and so was I. I saw you in the main room when I came to grab some coffee and I came over to talk to you. You were scared of me, that much I remember, but I couldn't get my head to stop thinking about you even after weeks, you know?" He let out a bitter laugh.

"Then today I asked your sister to bring you here so I could finally have the guts to finally let you see me more than just some dumb boss. I set up a whole show for free to send every person scrambling to the auditorium, which pummeled some of my sales. But still, it was worth it spending time with you," Bill told him. There was a sadness in his eyes, like Dipper had already yelled at him to get lost and told him he was a complete, disgusting liar.

But really, Dipper wasn't mad. He was more impressed that anything else.

"Bill," Dipper said. He looked at Bill, locking eyes with him and refusing to look away. "You did that, just for...?"

"You? Yes," Bill answered for him. He looked away from Dipper's questioning gaze, looking ashamed of himself. "I...thought you'd appreciate the gestures."

"And I do," Dipper told him. "I- I seriously do. But for God's sake, couldn't you have just asked me out instead of plunging your company into a mass panic?" he asked in disbelief.

Bill laughed, his eyes finally meeting Dipper's again. But this time, his face was one of joy. "No," he admitted. "That would have been too peasant-like."

"Oh please," Dipper snorted.

Then Bill laughed again, this time taking a step forward for losing Dipper. He wrapped his arms around the brunet, pulling him close to his chest.

Pressing his forehead against Dipper's, Bill took a deep breath and closed his eyes. They stayed like that for God knows how long, but Dipper liked it.

"You know," Dipper reminded him, his arms tightening around Bill's neck and pulling him closer to his lips. His lips barely brushed against Bill's, and he could tell it had an effect on the handsome man.

"You're taking me out on a date on Tuesday now. All you need to do now is kiss me," Dipper murmured against his lips.

Quietly, Bill stepped backward, just enough to be within reach of the tank behind him. He reached toward it with one arm, tapping the glass lightly.

Reeling away from Bill, Dipper looked at the tank in confusion. Bill simply grinned at him, already knowing what was happening.

Percy descending down to their level, a sign around his neck. A sign that said, 'Kiss me?'.

Laughing, Dipper turned his gaze back to Bill.  "Sure," he drawled. "I'll kiss Percy."

Bill made a face, a little pout that made Dipper laugh even harder. He tugged Dipper closer to him, almost growling under his breath. "I didn't do all this shit for you to lose to a goddamn seal," Bill grumbled.

Behind him, Percy headbutted the glass, catching Dipper's eye. Seeing that he caught the brunet's attention, he did spins in the a water, barking things and sending bubbles to the top. He seemed to scream, _just kiss him already before I really do take your booty instead!_ Dipper's lips quirked up, and his eyes came back to Bill, half-hooded.

"Mm." Dipper licked his lips, pressing his forehead back against Bill's. "Then just kiss me already before I do it myself." Bill's lips curled in a smile.

Then Bill drooped his head, pressing Dipper close to his body as he kissed him in the stranded aquarium.

Dipper had a feeling he was going to like visiting aquariums very, very much.


	5. Grease Is the Way We Are Feeing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The new exchange student from California has a little secret here in this gang-filled town of Oregon. He's been dating the greaser leader ever since the beginning of summer. No one can know that though, not even his twin sister! But what happens if summer lovin' gets a little too swell?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since it's been like, ten years since I've watched Grease with my family, I have to settle with a 1950s AU mixed in with some Grease references lol. It's basically the same thing, so here! There's some mention of homophobia and some violence here, but it was for the sake of the fluff, trust me D:

"I'm gonna get you for that, you little twerp!"

Dipper laughed, dancing out of Bill's reach. The leather-jacketed kook heaved out a huff, yelling more half-hearted insults thrown at Dipper's way. They ran around their sandcastle, a dance, more than anything else. 

"Then catch me if you can!" Dipper hollered back, stifling a laugh as Bill fell face first, his mouth filled with sand. 

Bill growled, scrambling back up from his spot with sand kicking up from his feet. "Why you little-"

He lunged for the thinner boy, just an inch away from getting him. But Dipper side-stepped, holding out Bill's class ring to the side in case the greaser tried to lunge again. "For a feared leader, you're really slow, babe!"

"Because you have my ring!" Bill wailed, trying once again, to get the ring out of Dipper's clenched fist. " _Pines_ , get back here! Or else!" 

"Or else what? You'll make me a knuckle sandwich?" drawled Dipper, once again dancing out of his boyfriend's reach. Bill caught his elbow, pulling him down to the sand as best as he could. But Dipper ripped him away, yelping as Bill lunged for him, his face full of promised murder. 

Then they tumbled down to their already broken sandcastle, crushing it even more until it was nothing but a pile of sand. Dipper laughed, still outstretching his arm up to prevent the greaser from taking the class ring from him. Bill tried to reach for it, but ultimately failed, his body still crushed against Dipper's. 

"Hey, come on, don't be like that!" Dipper accused. But his smile gave away his amusement. "It's just a ring, Billy!"

Bill huffed. "How many times do I-" He took a swipe for his ring, "-have to tell you that-" He growled when Dipper scurried out of his reach underneath him, "-my ring is my identity!"

"Yeah, sure, babe!" Dipper said, his voice amused to the very tip. Bill groaned, the energy in him already out. "Unless you can finally be the bigger man and get this ring from this supposedly 'weak and cuddly person who needs to protected' as you called me, I'm just going to- _hey_!"

Bill swiped Dipper's dusty hat off his head clean off, running away from him with laughter following close behind. Dipper huffed, narrowing his eyes at the sweaty back of Bill Cipher. He didn't follow, but merely watched him become smaller and smaller. 

It isn't until Bill was a good fifty feet away from him did Bill turn around, his confused grin adorably plastered on his face. "What's the hold up, Kitten? Scared I'll beat you in a race again?" he called out, voice tinged with teasing and pride. Dipper held back a smirk of his own. Sometimes, he felt like hanging out with Bill was the only and sole reason why he was the mischievous person he was at night. 

"Kitten?" Bill called out again, much more unsurely. 

Dipper stepped back, his ankles covering with water as the ocean receded to him. He held out his fist, the one with Bill's class ring in it. He held it out to the ocean, threatening to open his fist to let the ring be swept away by the vast sea. 

"Hey, what do you think you're-? KITTEN, DON'T YOU _DA_ -!"

Dipper laughed, wrenching open his fingers and letting the content spill into the ocean. Bill yelped, like a kicked dog. He ran, his face pale and ready to jump on anyone who tried to stop him. 

The brunet stepped to the side, letting Bill lunge into the ocean where he dropped something, his arms frantically searching the ocean. Seeing Bill flail there while he screamed bloody murder made Dipper laugh even harder, to the point he fell on his butt, the cold water up to his stomach. But he didn't mind it as much. 

He didn't even comprehend that another body had placed itself on top of him until warm, minty breath fanned his face. Slowly, his laugh faded away, feeling a familiar warm body press harder against him, as if trying to force him to open his eyes. 

And when he did, he couldn't help but shudder looking directly into Bill's eyes. They weren't murderous anymore, as one would have suspected. But filled with warmth, as it usually did when they were looking directly at Dipper, and only Dipper. 

"Hey good lookin', what's cookin'?" Bill purred. 

Dipper snorted, using the flat of his palm to push Bill away. But not too much. Bill grinned down at him. "Oh, cut it out," Dipper snickered. "I see I got you in a twist there, Billy."

"If you weren't such a babe, I would've had you beat up for calling me that," Bill huffed. But even with that threat, his voice was mellow, like how a gentleman would talk to their partner on their first date. And Dipper loved it. "But sadly, my gang has morals. One of them being not beating up gorgeous people."

"You goof," Dipper said, his voice just as soft. Carefully, without letting Dipper finish his sentence of accusation, Bill leaned in closer to him, rubbing their noses together affectionately as the water ebbed from them. 

"Now," Bill breathed. He pulled away from Dipper, looking back at him with that same chocolaty warmth in his eyes. "Where's my ring, baby doll?" he asked as sweetly as he can. 

"I don't have it," stated Dipper. He gave himself a mental pat on the shoulder for not stuttering for the life of him. "I dropped it in the ocean. You saw me, remember?"

Bill, unamused, held up a soda can tab. It wasn't a secret that Dipper liked to collect random things as a hobby, one of them unsurprisingly being soda can tabs. 

"Oh, would you look at that," Dipper laughed nervously. "A soda can tab..." His voice was quiet. 

" _Dipper_ ," Bill warned, eyes narrowed. 

"Okay, okay! You got me," Dipper said with a roll of his eyes. He shifted his weight underneath him, pulling out Bill's gigantic metal class ring from the back of his jeans. He dropped it onto Bill's wet hand. "I still don't get why you love that stupid ring so much."

"You kiddin' me, kid?" Bill snorted. Slowly, he got up from his spot on the sand, his pants and bottom half of his leather jacket dripping water. He reached out a hand to Dipper, in which Dipper gladly took. With Dipper now pressed close to his chest, the water now only up to their ankles, Bill spoke again. "That 'stupid' ring is my ticket in to the gang, Pines. Without it, I'm nothin'."

Bill propped his chin on top of Dipper's head. Dipper, in turn, snuggled closer to Bill's chest and closed his eyes, drinking in the sounds of seagulls in the distance and the receding water all around them. Their little getaway for the whole summer, coming here and falling more and more in love with each passing second. But reality was looming closer and Dipper found himself, well...worrying. 

"And if they found out about us, they'd kick you out, whether you have the ring or not," Dipper mumbled against his chest. Bill's lean muscles tensed against him. 

"Don't say that," Bill told him. But the slight edge to his voice told Dipper that he was worrying for the same reason. "They won't find out. At least not until we're out of that dump, the both of us. By then, we'll find some small town like this, but with people we don't know. And we could live in a small pad, secretly marry whether our folks like it or not and- and-"

"And what if they do before we get out of here?" Dipper challenged. Instead of pulling away, Bill held on tighter to him. Like they were already losing each other. 

"Then let them kick me out," Bill answered breezily. Weirdly, there was no hesitation to his words. "But if they lay even _one_ finger on you, I'll show them why they call me the most feared man in Oregon." The threat in his words was more than enough for Dipper to pull back, Bill's arms still tight around his waist. 

"You can't stop the government for taking us in, you know that," Dipper scolded. But his voice was quiet. Afraid. 

"But I can try," Bill chided. "I'm not known as the guy who cut off fingers and eyeballs and toes for noth-"

"Oookay, enough information, Bill," Dipper told him, lightly stepping on his toe. Bill chuckled. 

A finger was placed carefully underneath Dipper's chin, forcing the brunet to look up into Bill's fiery eyes. Eyes that told him that everything was alright, that they weren't broken as everyone would tell them, and that their little happily ever after was more than real. 

"Do you think this is the end?" Dipper asked him, words blurting out of him faster than he could try and stop it. His cheeks reddened a little, but Bill's burning eyes encouraged him to keep talking. "I mean...no one might...it's the end of the summer and...I just think..."  

Bill hushed him, his eyes still on Dipper like he couldn't get enough of the person in front of him. It felt like forever until Bill spoke, but the rushing water in his ears was more than enough to calm him down. Bill's thumb made circles on his lower lip, Bill's own lips pursing like he was trying to hold back from something. 

And just like that, Bill dipped his head down a little, bringing his body a little closer to kiss Dipper full on the mouth. 

And when he pulled away, the first words that came out of Bill's hoarse mellow voice was more than enough to fully calm Dipper down. 

"Kitten, this is only the beginning."

**************

"Aaand, _kabam_! Strawberry flavored milkshakes topped with a cherry on top!" exclaimed Dipper's energetic twin sister, Mabel. She slid an identical glass of cool milkshake over to her brother's side. Dipper cupped the glass around his fingers, taking a tentative sip as his sister rambled on as she usually did. 

"So, right after Grenda tells me about her boyfriend's awesome pad back in Austria, she told us that he let us use his flip-top! Bro, isn't that the coolest?!" Right after she finished her sentence, she latched onto Dipper's bicep and shook him vigorously. 

"Yeah, yeah, the coolest," Dipper agreed quickly, just right after he finished choking on his milkshake. "And say, Mabel, why did you bring us out here to get some milkshakes anyway? Is there a special party you're trying to convince me to get to or what?"

Mabel, in response, giggled. She took a happy sip of her own drink before replying, her voice bubbly as ever. "Well, aren't you the smarty pants, Dipper? I'm not trying to convince you to go to a special party with me, but a road trip!"

Dipper choked on his milkshake for the second time. "Wha- what? Mabel, it's like, the second week of school!" he argued. 

"And so?" snorted his sister.

He scowled at her, Mabel simply giving him her infamous innocent smile back. Right. Ever since Mabel and him were moved to Gravity Falls in the beginning of the summer, she found her 'people'. Which happened to be in some girl-greaser gang, called the Northwest Rebels. It was led by a rebel named Pacifica Northwest, the daughter of two rich folks who were highly respected here. There, she found two outcasts within the group, Candy and Grenda. she never stopped talking about her gang ever since the beginning of summer. He could tell that his twin was enjoying and getting comfortable moving to a new place than he was.

"Dipper, you _seriously_ got to get out more!" Mabel badgered on, noticing his dirty look. "It's just for the weekend and we're leaving next week. I already told Grunkle Stan that I was leaving for a junior year knitting club for the whole weekend, so all I have to do is say you're coming with-"

"No."

"Aw, Dipper!" Mabel complained. 

"I said no! Mabel, we're in our second to last year in high school! I can't fail my grades now, or else-"

"-you'll lose your chances to going to your dream college," Mabel finished for him. She rolled her eyes in unamusement. "Blah blah blah. But Dipper, we're not going to do anything illegal this time, or else I would have never asked you to come with me! The gang is just joining up with some other greaser club so we thought it would be nice to hang out."

"And get bullied by a whole other gang? It's one thing to be teased by girls like you, but a whole greaser gang? Come on, Mabel, you know how much I already get teased at school!" Dipper argued. 

Mabel, slowly, raised her eyebrows. She took a sip of her milkshake, almost judgmentally. Dipper almost cringed back from her suspicious gaze, instead mimicking her and taking a slurp of his milkshake as well. "There are over a hundred respective nerds at the school. One of them being you," Mabel stated slowly. "But while you don't need a sign hanging above you saying nerd, you're bullied almost _never,_ Dipper."

Dipper cringed back. Great. This was just swell. With the way she was looking at him, there was no guarantee she found out that Bill threatened every single bully in the school not to even _look_ at him in the wrong way and she was going to-

"If I didn't know you any better," Mabel giggled, "I would have thought someone else was looking out for you, Dip. You're lucky you have a sister who's close to the leader of the third most rebellious gang of all time. Ha, girl power." Oh. 

Her group, the Northwest Rebels, were indeed feared upon. C'mon- girls with hot pink baseball bats? Who wouldn't be afraid of _that_? 

But hey, the two most feared greaser gangs in Oregon could beat Mabel's gang with one look. There was the Demonic Angels, lead by some guy named Kryptos. Word on the street was that this guy Kryptos used to be in the most feared group ever, the leader's right hand man, sorta. Then he betrayed him somehow, and he was kicked off. Swearing revenge one day, Kryptos formed his own group, the sole purpose being to take down the leader. And not surprisingly, many people -girls, boys, college students- really, really hated the most feared greaser group's leader. 

The Weirdmageddon Troop. Weird name, but you make fun of that name freely and you'll find yourself hanging from the top of the school's flag pole by your underwear in fifteen seconds flat. They were ruthless, they were crazy. But their leader was crazier. Bill Cipher, a man rumored to have gouged a little boy's eye out for laughing at him. He was known for lashing out on people and for his crazy psycho laughter of his. But mostly he was known for his non-existent heart. Some say he couldn't feel love anymore, and some say he was too cruel to even try. 

This was the same man Dipper accidentally bumped into, yelling at him for spilling all his finals homework everywhere. This was the same man that pinned Dipper against the wall, growling at him for being disrespectful, for being a nobody, for being _worthless._ And it wasn't until Bill had seen Dipper's tears fall in the most broken way did he apologize, a soft plea of "Please stop crying, it makes me want to cry too" coming out of his mouth before Bill could even comprehend it himself. 

Then they laughed together, Bill had wiped his tears away, gave him a gentle wobbly smile, and introduced himself and asked for Dipper's name. Bill offered to take him to the Diner across the street to help him calm down, and side by side, hands weirdly feeling attracted to each other, they came inside and got to know each other. 

And that was the same stupid day that Dipper had realized he had fallen, _hard,_ for a psychotic greaser who could snap his neck in two seconds flat. 

Swallowing down the milkshake down his throat like it was a rock, Dipper leaned backwards, blinking once, then twice. And while people told him that it was alright to fall in love, that it was alright to kiss and to cuddle and to hold hands, no one had told him that it was right to fall for a man. It was unnatural, and stupid, and _awful_ \- but Dipper couldn't help himself. He was wrong, in so many ways, to love Bill, but he was in too deep to stop now. 

Dipper blinked again, but this time for the tears that threatened to fall. He hadn't seen Bill since that first day at school. Bill told him he'd help Dipper around the Gravity Falls high school, sit by him during lunch, and protect him from any bully that came his way. Bill told him that he didn't give a single damn what everyone thought, and only cared for what Dipper thought, and only him. 

But the Bill he saw at school was not the Bill he met at the beach.

Cruel, cold, selfish, and literally everything everyone had warned him Bill would be and what Bill assured him he was the opposite of. Bill had pushed him, literally _pushed_ him down the stairs when Dipper had tried to talk to him when Bill warned him not to. Bill had sneered at him while his friends laughed at Dipper and Mabel had tried hopelessly to get him off the floor, begging him to just ignore Bill, as Bill Cipher was nothing but a heartless demon who could not love. And then Dipper had walked off, glasses tilted sideways, a limp to his step, all the while Mabel helped him walk. 

And maybe because Bill had regretted it, or he did it to protect Dipper or some god-awful reason Bill came up with, but Bill had watched Dipper walk away, a pained look on his face while his friends bullied him around, punching his shoulder and punching him in the gut while none of them commented on how he looked, looking back at Dipper like that. 

Dipper massaged the bridge of his nose, propping an elbow on the table as he took another sip, forcing the sweetness down his throat. Mabel was too busy talking and rambling on, as she always did. Swinging her feet and twirling her hair around a finger, she talked about a guy she met at school, who was in a gang, just like her. 

But Dipper paid her no mind, looking out into space as he thought about the only person who managed to steal his heart away. A glance in the hallway, a small smile when Dipper presented his project, the quiet under-breath threats when someone commented on Dipper's binocular-sized glasses, eyes coming onto Dipper first when he came out there to play on the field, the warmth reserved for Dipper and only Dipper- Bill still loved him, even if...whatever he was trying to do was getting in the way. 

Sometimes Dipper wished he could just have the courage to talk to Bill again, just to ask him what the hell happened. But everyone was scared of rejection and Dipper Pines was scared of getting rejected twice in a row. 

"Dipper? Dippeeeeer? Binocular Face?" 

"Wha- huh?" Dipper's spine straightened, eyes shooting back up to his bemused sister in surprise. He gave her a sheepish smile. "Sorry, sis. What did you say?"

"Sometimes I wonder how on earth I was put in the same womb as you," Mabel grumbled, rolling her eyes. But her face was still bubbly as ever, lit up with the kind of joy that was contagious from a fifty mile radius. "I asked you if you were considering going. Like come on, I named like, a _gazillion_ reasons for you to go!"

"Mabel, I said no," Dipper sighed. He swirled his straw around his half empty glass. "I need to focus on my studies, you know that. But if you want, I can cover for you and you can go have fun while I stay here and-"

"Now you just sound depressing," Mabel snorted. She picked up her straw from her glass, pointing it at him while spots of whipped cream splattered on the counter in front of them. "I'll clue you into something, Dip. You come on this road trip on this one weekend, and everyone will leave you alone. Going on a road trip with the Northwest Rebels and the Weirdmageddon Troop? Do you realize how popular you could-?!"

"What did you say?"

Mabel gave him a weird look. "Say what?"

"Going on a road trip with who what where what now?" Dipper demanded. His milkshake was left unattended. 

"Uh...my girls and the Weirdmageddon Troop?" Mabel drawled out, unsurely. She raised an eyebrow at him, taking a slow sip of her milkshake as Dipper's eyes widened in complete surprise. "Look, I know you got some beef with Bill, but he barely talks to anyone anymore. As long as you stay out of his way, he won't-"

"I'm going." The words came out of his mouth like a relieved itch. 

His sister's brows shot up high in response. "Really?" she gasped, her tone no short of excitement. "Oh, Dipper, you have no idea how much fun we're going to have! We'll have a bonfire, and there's some chicks in my gang you could hook up with, and some marshmallows to roast, and it will be such a bash, Dipper, you have no ide-!"

"Sup, Sweet Cheeks, how you doin'?" drawled an apple-butter sweet voice from behind them. 

Curiously, Dipper turned his eyes to the man wrapping his arms around Mabel. His sister giggled when the guy kissed her cheek affectionately, drawling out the smooch noise like some love-sick romance. 

"Oh, you," Mabel giggled, trying mercilessly to push the greaser away. 

Dipper wrinkled his nose, averting his eyes as they kissed, full on the mouth. But even with his eyes away, he could hear the noises and giggles that came with it, much to his distaste. It was Mabel's current date, Keyhole. Of course, that wasn't _really_ his name, but it was the nickname given to him in the Weirdmageddon Troop for always letting the gang in with his lock-picking skills. While Bill refused to tell him much about his greaser gang, explaining that he didn't want Dipper to mingle with the "big guys", he sometimes told Dipper stories without meaning to. One of them being how completely idiotic and stupid Keyhole was sometimes.

"Can't you guys do that somewhere else? I don't like it." _And especially because I certainly wasn't thinking about how much I want Bill to surprise me like that once in a while but ha, I'm not._

"Dipper," Mabel accused, Keyhole laughing right beside her. He had his arm wrapped around Mabel's waist, almost like they were already a long time couple. It took all of Dipper's sanity not to knock Keyhole's teeth out. 

"Oh, don't poke at him, Mabes," Keyhole chuckled, planting another sloppy kiss on Mabel's cheek. Ugh. 

"Well, he wouldn't be like this if he just got himself a girlfriend!" Mabel huffed. Then she perked up, much to Keyhole's amusement. "Hey Dipper, I heard Pacifica broke up with her boyfriend last week. Maybe I could introduce you to her- er, _re-_ introduce, since the both of you had a really rocky road, huh? But anyway, she might say yes if you ask her on a-"

"Give it a rest, Mabes. He won't agree to it." Keyhole rolled his eyes while Dipper fought back to do the same. "And besides," Keyhole continued on, giving Dipper a sideways glance. Dipper didn't mistake the slight disgust in his features before it relaxed into a stoic one when Mabel turned her head to him. "He might be...uninterested in girls."

Dipper tried not to flinch back. 

"What are you badgering on about, Keyhole?" Mabel giggled. She pushed him a little, just playfully. "Of course he's into girls! I'm not his twin for nothing!"

The mischievous twinkle in Keyhole's eyes were unmistakable. Dipper tried not to move, might as well speak. Any wince or crackle of his voice would give him away, he was sure of it. "Yeah?" Keyhole drawled. "Why hasn't he dated one?"

" _Because_ ," Mabel giggled again. "He hasn't found the right one! Isn't that right, Dip? You told me you were trying to wait and see if you would find a proper girl!"

"Yeah, I am." His words were simple enough, with no strings attached. So why did it feel as if he was lying about everything and anything about who he was?

Oh yeah. Because he kind of was. 

Keyhole looked wary of Dipper, the slight upturn of his nose showing Dipper that he clearly hated being in the same room as a homosexual. It made Dipper feel a little uncomfortable, no matter how hard he tried to tell himself that everything was okay and Keyhole didn't have magic powers that could tell how he truly felt. 

"Right," Keyhole said, the wariness in his voice fading away as he turned to look at Mabel. His revulsion at the thought of Dipper being like 'that' washed away in an instant, his face lighting up like a Christmas tree. "Anyway, I didn't come here to tease your brother on his binoculars for once. I came here to ask if you wanted to watch the fight outside."

Dipper, already disinterested by the conversation, brought his milkshake back to him and started slurping up the rest of the contents. Mabel, while being the innocent girl she was, wasn't too keen on fights as the most of her gang was. But she still kind of liked watching them, especially with some new boy she wanted to impress. Dipper just didn't see the point in watching other people fist fight anyway. 

"A fight? Like, right outside?" Mabel asked him, her lips tugging down in a slight frown. A fight right outside the diner sure was a weird occurrence, but Dipper still kept his distance from the subject. 

"You betcha," Keyhole grinned. "Behind the back alley to the right of this dump. Massive fight too. The whole gang's there! In fact, every cool kid from school is there to watch!"

"Is it really that huge?" Mabel asked, voice awed. A gang gathered around a fight was impressive enough, but saying that the whole school body was watching was like saying...well, Dipper couldn't think of something impressive enough to top _that._ But he kept sipping his milkshake. 

"Yep," Keyhole confirmed. "The biggest. And you'll get front row seats just with me if you come."

Mabel gasped. "Really?!"

Keyhole just grinned. 

In an instant, Mabel jumped down from her seat, Keyhole's arm still snugly wrapped around her figure. Dipper seriously wanted to wipe that smug grin off his face. "Dipper, are you okay here? I seriously want to watch this fight!" she exclaimed. 

Dipper waved her off. "I'll be fine here," he assured her. "I'll just go home and study for the uh, tenth time...today. But anyway, watch it. Tell me about it when you get home, I don't care, sis."

"Ah, thank you, thank you, thank you!" she squealed, jumping up and down despite Keyhole's arm wrapped around her. She turned her head to him, a curious smile on her face as per usual. Dipper rolled his eyes, fixing his glasses to sit right on his face. 

"Hey, who _is_ fighting out there, anyway? They must be kooks for fighting outside Greasy's Diner with the cops nearby," Mabel mused. 

"Oh, you'll love it, I know it!" Keyhole grinned. He turned them to face the door, already walking off to finally, _finally_ leave Dipper in peace. "It's the legendary brawl everyone's been hoping for ever since Kryptos swore revenge against my old friend."

Mabel gasped underneath her breath, almost horrified. Dipper, upon hearing Keyhole's words, stiffened. He strained his ears, begging for Keyhole not to say the words he already knew would come. Bill wasn't that reckless. He _told_ Dipper that he wouldn't do this. He-

"Are you saying that...?" Mabel asked in a hushed whisper. As if it would taboo her for saying it out loud. 

Grimly, Keyhole nodded. "Boss and ol' Kryptos are finally fighting it out. You'd think the guy was over being kicked out by Bill, but guess not."

"Whoa!" Mabel exclaimed. The excitement was back to her words. "That's so _cool!_ Keyhole, come on, take me there, I want to see it get bashed before- hey, _Dipper_ , what are you-?!?"

Dipper, already gone up from his seat the moment Mabel had spoken, sped out of the diner, milkshake abandoned along with everything else his mind was screaming him not to do. But it was already too late, as he was now a good way out of sight from the diner, his legs working underneath him on autopilot. 

"Dipper, wait up! Stop! You'll-" Mabel called out from behind him. 

Hearing how close she already was and was gaining fast, Dipper pushed himself to move faster, pumping his legs until he could feel spikes coming up with each foot fall. His heart pounded in his chest like a heavy drum, the wind picking up and messing up his hair further. But he didn't care. 

"Dip, for God's sake, just _stop!_ Look, I know how much you want Bill pummeled, but you _have_ to wait up for me and Key-!" 

As promised, the fight was close to the diner. Boos mixed in with the roaring of cheers exploded in his ears, pumping his legs faster in motivation. Soon, the backs of teenagers came into view, but Dipper didn't stop. 

He shoved people through, whether that were women, freshmen, or even gang members that were identifiable with their greased hair and leather jackets. 

People yelled at him, but the force of his shove almost always cut them off. Someone even sneered, "What's the nerd doing here?" with another guffawing, "Poindexter must be here to get his ass whooped out there once and for all!"

But he ignored them all, only caring for the one person in the ring, the one person who _promised_ him that he'd stop getting into fights. And he used that as fuel, burning his heart and clouding his noggin to keep pushing through and finally find his way to the front. 

And then what? What was Dipper Pines, the biggest nerd and wimpiest kid in school, going to do once he witnessed Bill being beaten up by the one person he promised he'd lay off of? Every person who teased him was right. He was weak and he had no courage. So what on earth did he think he was _doing_?

"Dipper Pines, you come back here right this instant or else I'll tell Grunkle Stan you were the one who took his fez to-!" Mabel snapped.

By the time she had caught up to him, with Keyhole panting close behind her, Dipper had found his way to the front. 

And out in front of him was two leather-clad greasers, fists out and circling each other like caged lions. 

"Bill," Dipper whispered in horror.

"And holy moly, would you look at that," Keyhole whistled, sidling up beside Mabel. He put his fingers in his pockets, leaning forward to take a good look at the fight in front of him. "Last time I checked on them, they were arguing and choking each other. Now look."

As if on cue, Kryptos took an angry swing, in which Bill simply ducked to avoid. The crowd cheered on, almost deafening Dipper if it weren't for the constant pounding in his ears already. 

"Damn," Keyhole commented again. "I don't think I've ever seen Boss look so angry. Kryptos must've said something personal to piss him off like this."

"I bet," Mabel answered. She nodded to Bill, who was once again circling Kryptos. Dipper felt a shudder go down his spine, despite knowing that Bill's anger wasn't directed to him. The storm clouding Bill's face was more than enough for Dipper to know that he had snapped.

The crowd gasped as Bill was the one to take a swing this time, successfully hitting Kryptos square in the jaw. But the greaser took it well, rubbing the lumpy bruise forming with a grin and a sparkle in his eyes. "That all you got, Bill? Weird, you fight like a girl!"

Bill lunged for him again, hitting Kryptos on the other side of the cheek. The crowd winced back when Kryptos spat some blood on the pavement, his face already looking like a canvas for Bill's knuckle sandwiches. But the idiot was smiling, even though Bill was looking at him like he wanted to murder, not fist fight. 

What the _hell_ did Kryptos say to make Bill so angry?

Kryptos, having enough of Bill's games, leaped towards him and took a swing for Bill's neck. Bill blocked him with the side of his forearm, a grimace on his face as he did so. Kryptos took that as a distraction, hitting Bill straight in the gut. 

The crowd groaned in sympathy as Bill grunted heavily, leaning forward in pain. 

Almost as if he was hit himself, Dipper yelped, stepping forward almost subconsciously. Mabel pulled him back in time, hissing at him to mind where he was going unless he wanted to come over there and get hurt himself. 

Bill, seeming fueled by the crowd's gasps, looked up almost dramatically, his stormy rage becoming nothing but outrageous violence. His face looked scary enough that it made _Dipper_ wonder if that person out in front of him was truly Bill. 

Then Bill screamed, a raw bloody murder that got Dipper to flinch. The greaser reared his foot back, hitting Kryptos right where the sun didn't shine. 

But much to the crowd's surprise and winces, Kryptos only grinned, if not painfully. He pushed Bill back, strangling Bill in between his fingers. The crowd gasped again, and everyone seemed to be holding their breaths. No one, _no one_ could be this close to defeating Bill. It was just impossible. 

Living up to his reputation, Bill simply didn't allow Kryptos to wallow in his glory. He ripped Kryptos away, punching him once again, but this time to the nose. If Dipper was any closer, he would have heard the sickening wet crunch of the nose, and he was suddenly glad that he wasn't there to hear it. 

Kryptos howled in pain, hands coming up to his face as a natural defense. Bill took him by the shoulders, steering him enough to push him against the graffiti-covered brick wall. Then Bill took hold of his face and smashed it against the wall. 

The crowd howled with him, but out of cheerfulness. It seemed like more than half of them were on Bill's side, whether Kryptos liked it or not. That included Mabel, who cheered with the crowd to Bill's merciless beating of his rival. 

Dipper, on the other hand, felt sick to his stomach. This wasn't Bill. Bill didn't do this kind of thing to people just because they pissed him off. Bill was kind, he was sweet, he was everything Dipper could ask for. Not this.

And he wanted so badly to yell at him, to ask Bill what was going on and to stop this right now, before he broke down from a panic attack.

Bill, almost as if he heard Dipper's screaming thoughts, looked up, just briefly, to the crowd. 

And when he saw Dipper, the fingers threaded in Kryptos's greasy hair loosened in shock, his face falling in utter horror. And the look on his face was enough for Dipper to read, from all the moments they shared through the summer. _Why are you here?_

And Kryptos, the guy who was waiting for the right moment this whole time, had grinned. Dipper, or anyone for that matter, couldn't yell at Bill to move before Kryptos had turned around in record time, pinning Bill against the wall instead. He had the speed of a person who had trained for this sort of thing for years, and the fire that came with it. 

While Bill had the fire of anger in him, resentment and envy was stronger. 

And Dipper didn't know if he screamed, or if he even moved, as Kryptos receded Bill's head backwards, then slammed his face with an audible crunch, despite the noise of the crowd. 

He wanted to scream. He wanted to cry and help Bill. But he was too weak. And he couldn't do anything about it as Kryptos did it again, then again, and again, like a revenge worth savoring.

"No," Dipper managed through his limp lips. "No, no, no, no-"

"Oh, ouch," Keyhole interrupted, wincing as Bill's neck was craned just a little, so Kryptos could smash his nose as well. "I really want to help out right now, and I bet everyone else here does too, but the rules are the rules, I guess."

For once in his life, Dipper wanted someone to break those rules for him. 

He couldn't help but keep looking as Bill kept being abused, his arms behind his back while Kryptos held onto his wrists painfully. And the thing is- Bill didn't scream. Not once, not ever.

Dipper knew he had more than enough strength in him to move and fight back. So why wasn't he?

"Bill," Dipper whispered under his breath. "Please, please, _please._ Don't do this to yourself."

The man didn't hear him. Mabel couldn't even hear him either. While that fact was true and he wasn't expecting anything more, he felt himself become more and more devastated, feeling his heart deflate just that more lower. Anything could hurt less than seeing Bill hurt himself like this. 

But what did he expect, falling in love with not just a greaser, but someone who had more than enough enemies to share with the whole state?

Almost like Bill had finally heard him, or just so he could see Dipper one more time, Bill turned his head with Kryptos's fingers still curled around his slick hair. His eyes locked onto Dipper's. They weren't warm, or inviting, or even kind. They were cold, devastated, and diminished. Like he had already lost. 

"Mabel, one of us has to do something," Dipper blurted in a panic. His voice was hard to hear over the sound of cheers and overall noise. So he picked up the volume. "His- his head is going to split open if Kryptos keeps this up. He'll _die,_ Mabel, he's not indestructible, he'll-"

"I thought you _wanted_ him dead?" Mabel asked him. "Or at least, beat up, I guess," she added thoughtfully.

"No I don't," Dipper snapped.

He wanted, more than anything, to tell Mabel that he didn't want Bill dead. That he wanted to run up to Bill and stop this and just...kiss him.

He crossed his arms over his chest protectively. He hated this. He hated lying to his sister. But what stupid choice did he have?

He winced, again, as Kryptos knocked Bill's temple right against the bloody brick wall. There was already blood pouring out of Bill's nose, as well as the side of his face, but the greaser didn't seem to care. He just kept hitting Bill, over and over again, all the while laughing. His laugh wasn't as chilling as Bill's, but it certainly wasn't the nicest.

Beside him, Mabel and Keyhole whooped. Like they weren't even a little bit affected by the scene in front of them. Mabel was understandable but Keyhole was a loyal follower of Bill's. So why was he...?

To his horror, Kryptos stopped to let Bill pant like a dog against the wall, his fist still on Bill's face. He thought, hoped that Kryptos was being nice and to call it a day, but it was the complete opposite of it.

Kryptos reached behind him, pulling out a pocket knife from his back pocket. He let it glint in the afternoon light, letting everyone see it. He grinned, already knowing he had won.

And no one could stop him as he raised it above his head, ready to stuff it right into Bill's stomach.

But Dipper moved forward, despite Mabel's pleas and her fingers trying to hook onto his shirt to hold him back. He screamed, or maybe he didn't. All he knew was that he ran for his lover, knowing nothing of what he would do the moment he was face to face with a man with a knife.

Kryptos answered that for him.

He turned his body slightly, just in time to watch Dipper charge towards him. His eyes flickered with surprise.

But he latched onto Dipper's wrist in an instant, letting go of Bill's face with the other. He chuckled, deeply and darkly. His face was a mask of victory and amusement at the sudden interruption, but he seemed more happy with it than irritated. Dipper watched him, almost warily, at what he was going to do. His heart beat faster than it ever did in his entire life of existence, concerned for his life. He saw exactly what Kryptos was capable of and he had no doubt that the greaser didn't have a problem placing those expectations on Dipper.

"You got some guts there, kid," he sneered, moving closer to Dipper. The crowd held their breath. No one dared to move.

He leaned forward until his cigar breath fanned Dipper's face. It took all of Dipper's will not to flinch back at both the smell and the grin on the guy's face, forcing himself to look stoic and unafraid.

"Don't worry, Little Dipper," Kryptos whispered in his ear. "I know about your little secret."

Dipper stopped breathing all together. He didn't dare move another inch, might as well inhale. Kryptos was stalking him like a predator, amused by the situation. He even laughed.

Then he pushed Dipper to the ground with one shove. Dipper came down like a domino, no strength in him to try and get back up. What was the use of getting up anyway?

"Look at you, " chided Kryptos. He knelt beside Dipper, fingers curling around Dipper's collar. "I think it would be mighty fine if I could just carve a little symbol on your face, huh? Show everyone how absolutely disgusting you and Billy Boy are? Huh? Hmm..."

Dipper shook, almost whimpering when a cold blade came up and down his cheek, like how a lover would stroke their significant other. "Left cheek? Right cheek?" whispered Kryptos amusingly.

The crowd stayed silent. No one, not even Mabel, had the courage to step forward and save him.

"How about I just cover your face with cuts huh? Wouldn't that be fu-?"

"GET OFF HIM!" Bill bellowed.

And in an instant, Kryptos was wrestled off from Dipper, being dragged by his collar to the same spot Bill was in just a moment ago. This time, Bill was no longer merciful either. He hit Kryptos against the bloodied wall so hard that Dipper heard a crack. Even without being the one under Bill's fist, he knew that Bill could hit twice as strong as Kryptos could, especially in this...rage-like state of his.

"Never-" Bill snarled, hitting Kryptos again with a wet snap that sounded awfully like bone and muscle, "-ever-" He hit Kryptos again, "-hurt _him_ or my friends-" Bill's nails dug into Kryptos's neck until the man yelped, "- _ever again_. Do you hear me?" His voice was nothing but a whisper,  but the threat was twice as scary that way.

Kryptos only groaned, blood down to his neck already.

 _"DO YOU?!"_ Bill roared, so loud that the crowd was put into stunned silence.

"Yeah, yeah," Kryptos groaned. He didn't seem so tough now, being beat. "But I don't get you, Billy Boy. He's- he's only a _nerd_. Why would you-"

"SHUT. _UP_!" Bill snarled, hitting Kryptos again so abruptly that Dipper cringed back, like he was being the one smashed against the wall mercilessly. "That moron is my right hand's man's girlfriend's twin. I look out for people like that," he said again, nothing in words showing that he had calmed down. The heavy breaths Bill kept trying to take in told Dipper and everyone within sight that he was more than gladly to take that knife dropped to the floor to plunge it straight into Kryptos's stomach. 

"And he's- he's more than just a nerd," Bill mumbled, his words becoming quieter and quieter.

Kryptos, his cool demeanor coming back with Bill's skepticism, laughed. The circle of people around them stayed awfully quiet, none of them knowing what to do. And frankly, Dipper didn't know either. "Really? What's he to ya? Some bet gone wrong? A plaything? Your-?"

There was a snap- then Kryptos collapsed to his knees, until he eventually laid on the pavement with no sign of life. 

Everyone took a step back when Bill turned around, almost in harmony. Holding their breaths, they all looked up at Bill, whether they despised him or worshiped him. No one spoke, no one moved, and no one dared to even _breathe._

It isn't until the sounds of sirens filled the air did everyone snapped awake, murmurs of confusion coming throughout the crowd. They all shifted uneasily, save for Dipper, who simply stayed looking down at the ground like it was the most interesting thing in the world. 

"I think that's the heat, man, let's split!" shouted a guy from the crowd. 

Just like that, everyone ran in different directions, wanting nothing to do with the cops that were surely to come here due to the complaints of some no good adults. Screams and shouts of people filled the air, but it sounded like Dipper was underwater, his heart thrumming louder and louder in his ears the louder the screams got. He squeezed his eyes shut, wanting all of this to be over, for him to just live a goddamned normal life. Was that too much to ask?

"-ipper! Goodness!" Mabel exclaimed, her fingers wrapping around Dipper's elbow. She tugged him upwards and Dipper obeyed mindlessly, his knees feeling like lead underneath him. His vision swam with black dots, eyes still downcast to the gray pavement. He couldn't stand looking at Mabel, or Bill, or anyone. Or Kryptos, who could be lying dead, right in front of him. 

"What on earth are you still doing there? Let's go before the cops find us and get us rousted!" Mabel screamed at him, shaking him like he was asleep on his feet. But Dipper still didn't move. 

"No, I'm- I'll-" Dipper blurted out. He squeezed his eyes shut, willing his heart to stop beating so fast and willing himself to calm the hell down. Everything was okay, he was fine, and so was Bill, but- why did it feel like absolutely nothing _was_?

"I'll catch up to you later, Mabel. The cops can't arrest me, they know how much of a goody two-shoes I am. I'll just...make up some excuse," he said through his teeth. He looked up at her, his vision finally clear of the black dots that swam around. He willed her to try and understand him through his eyes, that he needed to do something, badly. 

Mabel opened and closed her mouth in an unflattering manner, looking split between trusting her nose bleed of a brother or pulling him directly back to the Shack before any of them could get in serious trouble. But deciding that Dipper wasn't much of a troublemaker and he'd be fine on his own, Mabel moaned in slight pain of her decision, letting go of his elbow hesitantly. 

"If you die, I'm feeding your empty worm-brained head to Waddles," she threatened. 

Dipper smiled at her gratefully. He stuffed his fingers in his tiny pockets, assuring her that he'll be home by tonight. "Tell Grunkle Stan I was away at another math club meeting. I just need to check on something real quick," Dipper told her. He fist-bumped with her, then urged her to get out before the cops could get any closer. 

The sirens wailing in the distance got softer, like they were actually going _away._ It didn't take a genius like him to figure out that the heat caught sight of the running teenagers, going after them instead of the crime scene.

Dipper took a deep breath, turning his head to the crippled body on the floor. He took a tentative towards the body, just to make sure the guy didn't need serious help. As much as he wanted Kryptos seriously hurt for hurting his Bill, he didn't want him dead. Uh, at least not yet. 

But the sight of bloodied leather jacket and greased back hair caught his eye and he looked up. Bill made his way around the corner of the back alley, slinking away like a cat on the streets. 

He gulped. He only came here just to make sure no one had died. But at the same time, he knew he was hoping to bump into Bill, to talk about their...situation here. Was it really worth it, especially with Bill in such a- a violent state? 

Shaking his head, he forced his legs to move forward, to run back to Bill. As pathetic as that sounded, it was the only thing he had dreamt about for the past two weeks. Running back to him, kissing him, sleeping in the same bed- everything Bill had promised that would happen one day. 

"Babe-" he began, the name slipping out between his lips before he could stop it.

"Go away, Dipper," Bill clipped. He hung his head low, hands stuffed in his leather jacket's pockets. The greaser moved faster, wanting to get away from Dipper as fast as he possibly could. 

"No, not until you tell what the hell happened back there," Dipper said stubbornly, feeling more confident than he had in weeks. Seeing how broken Bill was, and how quiet he had become, had fueled him in a way he couldn't understand. 

"Ice it, Pines!" Bill snapped angrily. But he still didn't turn to look at Dipper. 

" _No_!" Dipper snapped back. He forced himself forward, placing a hand firmly on Bill's broad shoulder. "Not until you turn around and face me like a man and tell me, directly to my face, why you don't _love me anymore_!" The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. 

And just like that, Bill stopped in his tracks. He lifted his head. 

Realizing his mistake and realizing that Bill could literally kill him right there and then without anyone witnessing it. Dipper retracted his hand away from his shoulder, stepping backward with wide eyes. He shouldn't have been so bold like that. Because of course Bill didn't love him. What man would love another man, wholly without any problems? 

Bill laughed, his maniac laughter he was known for echoing through the dirty walls of the narrow alley. He didn't turn, but his head was up. His shoulders shook with his laugh, icing Dipper to the bone.

He didn't know how long Bill was laughing for, nor did he know how long _he_ stood there for, dumbstruck by Bill's sudden outburst of laughter. 

"Wha- what's so funny?" Dipper demanded. 

Bill's laugh calmed down to his words, fading away with the sirens in the distance. And then he turned around, facing Dipper directly for the first time in weeks. 

It took everything in Dipper not to gasp or flinch away at the abuse Bill took from the fight. A bruised bottom lip, a blackened eye that was beginning to swell, the whole left side of his face caked in dry blood, and a broken nose that was starting to look puffed. There was a cut under Bill's right eye, but Dipper had a feeling that it wasn't from this particular fight. Bill's been in other fights, and there was no doubt about it. That was why Keyhole didn't flinch at his Boss's beating- he's certainly been in worst.

"Why would you do this to yourself?" Dipper whispered. 

"Is that what you think?" Bill asked him, not unkindly. He completely ignored Dipper's question, looking into his eyes with a hardened look. The warmth was no longer there. Of course it wasn't. 

Dipper, Bill's words finally processing in his head, simply frowned in confusion. 

Bill's eyes searched his face, for something, _anything._ But when he got his answer, his face became crestfallen. A person singing the blues would be a happier sight than seeing Bill look so heartbroken like this. But Dipper didn't know why, until Bill's soft mellow voice spoke words that were nothing but delicately broken. 

"You think I don't love you?" Bill asked in a quiet, brittle murmur. 

Like the thought of him not loving Dipper was enough to break him down. 

"You ignored me when I needed you," Dipper replied softly. He wanted so badly to reach out for Bill, to suddenly apologize for something he didn't do. And that frustrated him more than anything in the world.

"I-" Bill turned his gaze away, clearing his throat. A brief flash of regret and pain came across his features, before it settled to a look of detachment everyone was used to, but Dipper was not. He was used to the loving, energetic Bill, not whatever this person was in front of him. 

"Kitten, I think it's best if you leave," Bill muttered, his tone not as strong as he wanted it to be. 

"I'm not leaving you," Dipper told him. The roles felt reversed to him. Bill was supposed to be the stubborn idiot who didn't want to leave, not him. "I'm not leaving you again, Bill."

Instead of arguing with him, Bill sighed, giving him a plain look that betrayed nothing of how he felt. Without a word, Bill turned around, walking away. Dipper followed him, whether he wanted that to happen or not. 

To his surprise, Bill stopped around a bend, in front of a green paint peeling door. He rattled the door, pushing it open with a dry creak that made Dipper cringe. Bill disappeared inside, leaving the door open for Dipper.

So Dipper walked inside, closing the door behind him to make sure no one followed. He had to blink to see clearly again, dust making him sneeze twice in a row. He rubbed his nose, sniffing. 

Bill laughed, his warm laughter so different from the one he heard outside. It echoed through the walls of the abandoned area, for once making Dipper feel safe. Now finally getting to see the inside of where they came in, Dipper's brows shot up high in surprise. The warm glow of the single light-bulb Bill turned on cast a yellow light on every single piece of furniture and exterior. There were overturned chairs, tables, and even a dusty counter to top it off. It was the abandoned diner that shut down after Greasy's opened up. 

A callused finger came under Dipper's chin, tilting it upwards to have his eyes meet with warm, pleasant ones. "Did anyone ever tell you that you sneeze like a kitten, Kitten?" Bill purred. 

Dipper scowled playfully, waving Bill's hand away from his face. "Well, isn't that why you keep calling me that god-awful name?" he said wryly. 

Bill hummed, tapping a finger to his chin in thought. "Hmm, I could have sworn I named you Kitten solely because you were five times cuter than any of those little fur-balls but that works too."

Dipper's face flushed in embarrassment, so he hung it down to make sure Bill didn't catch it. But he did and he forced Dipper to look back up at him with two fingers around his chin, wrapped carefully like he was afraid he would hurt Dipper.

Bill didn't speak, just staring at Dipper in a way that made Dipper's insides feel like goop. "Wh- why are you looking at me like that?" Dipper asked, forcing a laugh. 

"Nothing," Bill breathed, letting go of his chin. He smiled softly at Dipper, causing his heart to jump as it usually did around the greaser. "I just wanted to see your gorgeous face again."

"How cheesy can you _get,_ Bill?" Dipper asked in exasperation. He tried to seem irritated, but in truth, he was more than flustered. 

The greaser laughed, planting a kiss on Dipper's forehead tenderly. Then he turned, footsteps echoing through the dusty diner. He limped a little, a noticeable feature that made Dipper frown. 

"Bill, why did you bring us here?" Dipper finally called. "Wasn't this place demolished? How- how did you even get access to-?"

"As much as I'd love hearing you nag at me like my married wife, I need you to stay there and be good, okay Kitten?" Bill cut off, his tone suggesting that he was a little bit amused by Dipper's so-called nagging. 

Dipper huffed. He crossed his arms over his chest, watching Bill come over the other side of the counter to pull out a dusty first-aid kit, placing it on top of the counter. He sat down on one of the bar stools at the very end of the counter, opening up the kit with the front of his body turned to Dipper. "And anyway, you writing a book or what? But to answer that, this place was _supposed_ to be demolished, but I got them out of it. Not even my posse know about this place. It's my...safe haven."

"Safe haven? What do you-?" Dipper frowned. 

"I mean-" Bill cut off, lifting his head to look at Dipper. Bill's eyes softened looking at him, his hands freezing over the first aid kit. "That this place was supposed to be rebuilt to be my pad. I...wanted this to be our place, you know? Just some place where we don't have to worry about the man finding us, or our friends catching us making out, or even being together..." He trailed off. 

Dipper's eyes glanced around the place. There was a mattress in the corner of the room, with blankets and pillows and everything, fit for two people specifically. Though it was hard to see from here, Dipper saw that there was a stash of food near the counter. Then there was also a radio on top of a shelf, looking new and ready to go. The place looked half built, but then abandoned, like someone threw away their project to rebuild this halfway through. 

"You tried to rebuild this just for us?" Dipper asked softly, his voice cracking for the first time in years. 

Bill paused, eyes on the bandages and things he placed on the counter in front of him. "Yeah," he admitted, voice quiet. "Yeah, I did. But I...left the plan halfway. It wasn't worth it."

"And why not?" Dipper blurted. He couldn't help but feel a little hurt. 

Bill, realizing that his choice of words probably hurt Dipper, looked up at him curiously. "That's not what I meant," he said quickly. "You're worth it. I mean- ugh. I just meant that- that since you weren't talking to me you'd- you know?"

"Not talk to you? Bill, you're the one whose been ignoring me!" Dipper exclaimed, a little frustrated. 

"I know, I know!" Bill huffed. He shrugged out of his leather jacket, letting it fall to the dusty floor without a care in the world. "But you could have at least tried and talked to me!"

Dipper felt his frustration flare. Seriously?!

"You pushed me down the stairs when I tried!" Dipper snapped at him. Deciding that enough was enough, he moved forward, stalking towards Bill. 

Bill gave him a dirty look, rolling his eyes when Dipper put a hand over his knuckles to stop him from bandaging his arm. "What's your _problem,_ Bill? Why did you act like what we had during the summer was nothing to you?" Dipper demanded. 

Bill simply stared at him. "I don't have one, Kitten. What did I just tell you about being good?" he said bitterly. 

"Let me help you, Bill," Dipper said, completely ignoring his question in turn. Without asking, he took the bandage wraps from under Bill's hand and placed it in his. 

"I don't need help," Bill snapped. 

"Yes, you do," Dipper snapped back. "Don't lie and tell me that was the only fight you had for the past few weeks. I know scars when I see them."

"Leave it!" Bill snarled when Dipper placed a finger on his sore bicep. Dipper rolled his eyes at Bill's predictable behavior, unwrapping the bandages and wrapping it around Bill's bicep, even though spews were being tossed out of Bill's mouth. 

Happy with his handy work, Dipper took the salve from the first aid kit, despite Bill's remarks. "Kitten, I said I was fine! You don't need to help me," Bill argued hopelessly. Dipper didn't listen, uncapping the salve. 

Glaring, Bill watched him put some on the tip of his finger. "Dipper, I'm-" Bill said in exasperation. 

Then he hissed when the fluid came in touch with his bruised bottom lip, making Dipper hum in an _I told you so_ way. "You're _hurt,_ Bill. I'm going to help you whether you like it or not," Dipper told him, spreading it over Bill's bottom lip. Bill grunted, placing a hand over Dipper's wrist to try and stop him from doing anything else. 

"I'm _fine,_ Dipper. I'm-" He hissed again, no doubt feeling the burning sensation come over his lip. He blinked warily, looking distorted from the slight pain.

"See? You're just a stubborn goof. I need you to hold still and let me do this one thing for you," Dipper told him, annoyance coating his words. 

"No. I'll do it myself. Just-" Bill grunted. 

"If I were the one hurt out there, would you leave me to patch myself up or would you help me?" Dipper snapped. 

That shut Bill right up. 

Satisfied, Dipper put down the salve, now tending Bill's dried blood. He took a cloth from the kit, looking around for something he could use. A filled water bottle was left abandoned on the ground and he took it up in victory, uncapping the bottle to cover the cloth in water. Then he touched tip of the cloth to Bill's temple, right where the source of the blood was. Bill flinched a little, hands clenching in his lap. 

He spread it down to Bill's chin as tenderly as he could, wiping as much blood as he could. When the side of Bill's face was nothing but water droplets, Dipper took an alternative dry cloth from the counter and wiped Bill's face clean. 

Dipper clicked his tongue when Bill yelped, a hand flying over to his nose when Dipper lightly tapped it with the cloth to get some blood off. "Look at you," Dipper scolded, shaking his head. "I told you not to get into fights and look at what you do. What even made you so bloodthirsty to get out there and get into random fights?"

Bill gave him a sheepish smile. "Sorry, Kitten," he drawled. "I won't do it again."

"Good," Dipper sniffed. He took a band-aid from the kit and placed it on Bill's swollen nose, taking his chances and planting a kiss lightly on the tip of the nose. When he pulled back, Bill was grinning at him, like a hyperactive ankle-biter. 

"What?"

"Kiss me again," Bill urged excitedly. 

Dipper laughed, swiping Bill's forehead with a cloth. "What for?"

"Your kisses are all the medicine I need, you know."

"You demand many things, you know that?" Dipper huffed. But he put down his cloth, automatically leaning forward with his arms wrapped around Bill's neck. And in an instant, Bill's hands flew to his waist to keep him steady, their lips crashing together happily and excitedly. After all, they haven't kissed in what? Hours? Days? Weeks? It felt like a lifetime, if Dipper was being honest. 

Dipper was the first one to lean away, laughing when Bill simply blinked in confusion, a little distorted from their deep kiss. He tugged on the hem of Bill's dirty white shirt. "Take this off," he demanded. 

Bill quirked an eyebrow at him, amused by his request. His hands were still placed firmly on Dipper's waist, but they moved just a little more to grope his ass. Dipper held back a yelp of surprise, giving Bill his meanest scowl in return.

"What, can't wait to see my body, Kitten?" he purred flirtatiously. 

"Not in that way, you pervert," Dipper huffed. He tugged again on Bill's shirt, more persistently. "I need to check your bruises, Bill."

Bill's smile faded a little, just a bit. "Oh."

Other than that, he obeyed Dipper's demand without a problem. He leaned away from the brunet, crossing his arms in front of him to grip the bottom of his shirt. He pulled the shirt up, tugging it over his head and letting the fabric fall down to the floor to join his leather jacket. 

Before Dipper could check his body for any scars and bruises (and he had to admit, to check out Bill too, because who wouldn't?), Bill pulled him close with a hand on Dipper's lower back. Then their lips interlocked again, their kiss more stubborn and profound. 

Bill pulled away this time, smirking as Dipper inhaled to catch his breath from the breathtaking kiss the greaser had given him. He stepped away from Bill, giving the shirtless man a look of surprise. Pleasant surprise, if he was being truthful. "What was _that_ for?"

Bill laughed at his outrageous question, pulling him close one last time to plant a kiss on Dipper's own nose. "Nothing out of the ordinary, Kitten. I just missed you," Bill admitted. Then he peppered a few more kisses on Dipper's neck and face, much to Dipper's amusement. 

"Well, if you didn't ignore me for the past few weeks, I would have returned those feelings," Dipper told him stubbornly. Bill's face fell. 

Sighing, Dipper looked down at his body, stepping backward again a little. He tried not to show his surprise, but he knew Bill could see right through him very, very well. "I...well." He swallowed the lump in his throat. "I didn't expect that many, but..."

Bill gave him a solemn smile. "Surprised?"

Dipper, not being able to stop himself, placed a hand over Bill's chest, running it down. He could feel every scar, bruise, and bump that came under his fingers. And most of all, he could feel Bill's weak heart beat. He sighed deeply. 

"How am I supposed to keeping doing this if you keep doing this to yourself?"

"Hmm?" Bill lifted his head to his words. He kept his eyes on Dipper while Dipper's stayed on his chest, lips tugging down as he inspected every scar. Some were old, some were new, and some were just...

"Kitten?" His voice sounded much like a scared little five year old. 

Closing his eyes, Dipper leaned forward, pressing his forehead against Bill's. He licked his lips, eyes still on Bill's body. His heart ached just thinking about all the times Bill would have dragged himself from a fight, alone and lost and...

"Dipper," Bill murmured. A shiver wormed its way down Dipper's spine. 

His head was tilted upwards, a finger under his chin, as always. Tears spiked at the corners of Dipper's eyes, threatening to spill if he saw anymore of Bill's wounds. This was all his fault and there was no doubt about it anymore. All his stupid, stupid fault. 

When Dipper sniffled, a flash of surprise came across Bill's features. "Hey," he said softly. "Why are you-?"

"I want to leave you, Bill."

Bill's eyes widened, his face morphing into fury. " _Why_?" he demanded. But even with the order, his words were laced with pain, no matter how hard Bill had tried to cover it up. And no matter how hard he tried to hide it, Dipper could see right through his tough exterior. His announcement was breaking Bill down even further. The anger was just a cover up. 

Instead of answering, Dipper turned his eyes away from him, taking some sterile bandage pads from the kit to cover up Bill's bigger wounds. "There's blood on you still. It won't stop until I-" Dipper stated in a dry tone. 

"Dipper."

Dipper swallowed back his retort, pretending that he didn't hear Bill as he unpeeled the bandage. "If we cover it up, it should be enough to stop the bleeding. You're lucky I didn't faint from the sight of your blood, Bill. You're lucky I-"

"I'm lucky to have you." His voice was soft, solemn. 

"If it hurts, tell me. Some of them still look new," Dipper sighed. He placed a patch over one of Bill's open scars. 

"My heart hurts because you're leaving me." Bill tilted his head to the side, looking for a sign that Dipper was listening to him. But Dipper ignored it. 

"You really got to keep still, Bill, or else this is going to hurt like-"

"-son of a _bitch_!" Bill swore jumping slightly in his seat when Dipper flattened out the bandage over his chest. Dipper clicked his tongue like how a mother would scold their child. 

"Exactly. Now hold still before I have to knock you dead," Dipper warned, peeling another wrapped gauze. "I need you to take that cloth over there and put that in your mouth, or else you're going to attract every person in town here to witness you cry like a baby. I'm going to take some of this rubbing alcohol to clean your-"

"Dipper," Bill lamented. 

"Are you even listening to me? Take the cloth already and-"

"And are you listening to _me?_ Why are you-?"

"I'm going to uncap this right this instant and pour it, so you better can it and-"

"Dipper, I'm not going to shut up until you tell me why you're-"

_"CIPHER!"_

Bill shut his mouth like a bear trap. But that didn't keep him from giving Dipper a somewhat irritated look for making him shut up like Dipper was the boss of him. His fiery eyes searched Dipper's, silently asking him the question that the brunet refused to answer every single time. 

"Bill-" Dipper sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He wrinkled his nose, looking more distressed than he did than before. "Look, I need you to stop talking for one moment just so I can do this for you. Then I'll be out of your life and-"

Just like that, like Dipper's last sentence has struck a chord in him, Bill grabbed Dipper by the waist, pulling him to his lap whether the weaker man liked it or not. Then Bill kissed him, much to Dipper's surprise. Again, it was a pleasant surprise. Whether he liked to admit or not. 

Just so he could shut Bill up the last time and satisfy him, Dipper wrapped his arms around Bill's neck, pulling him closer. Then he moved his lips, responding to Bill in the most ardent, wistfully delighted way that got the greaser smiling against him. And he smiled back, because he knew it was the only way to combat the heartsickness in his chest. 

They kissed, and kissed, and kissed some more. No one was there to stop them, no one was there to stop Bill from tugging on his shirt to get even, and no one certainly stopped Dipper from giving in to Bill's wishes, their bodies nothing but puddles of messes against each other. And they loved each and every single moment with each other. 

It was only when Dipper felt Bill's hand coming under his pants did he pull away, panting. As much as he wanted to be with Bill, and as much as Bill wanted to be with him, they couldn't continue like this. 

Staring at Bill silently, his mouth slightly parted like he wanted to say something but couldn't, Bill understood. And for once in his life, the greaser looked lost, less confident than he ever was. 

Bill lowered his head, sighing shakily as he kept his head tucked comfortably under Dipper's chin. And he just stayed like that, keeping Dipper in place as heavy unsteady breaths came out of him, one by one, slowly. No one move and no one pulled away. 

Dipper half-closed his eyes, stroking Bill's now messy hair with idle fingers. He made soothing noises, ones that a mother would make to calm down their tantruming child. And, admittedly, Bill's soft breathing against his bare chest was relaxing him as well.

"Don't..." Bill whispered, his voice just as weak and unsteady as his shaking fingers clenched behind Dipper's back. The heartbreak in his voice was more than enough to make tears fight back in Dipper's eyes, and he wondered if he was honestly doing the right thing. For the both of them. 

"Don't leave me," Bill whimpered. 

Dipper closed his eyes, gulping down the sob that climbed up his throat. He didn't realize how much he had missed Bill until he heard the same kind of heartbreak in his lover's voice. And he didn't realize how much being apart from each other was breaking both people, on both ends. 

"I don't want to, Bill. I really don't," Dipper told him quietly. "But I have to."

Bill looked up at him, eyes glimmering with tears. One even managed to escape. Bill, always telling Dipper that he didn't "do tears", wiped the droplet away in disgust, blinking to make sure none were to escape again. "Why?" Bill asked him hoarsely. "What do you want me to do, Kitten? I'll do it. I'll do anything you want, I swear. Just don't...don't go." The hope in his voice made Dipper inhale sharply. 

"You ignored me for _weeks,_ Bill," Dipper accused. But despite himself, he couldn't help but play with the back of Bill's curls, the grease becoming undone from behind due to their, ah...make out session. "Then I find out you get into all these fights just for nothing. Then the one person you promised you'd stay away from makes you uselessly angry and you _kill_ him?"

Bill chewed on his bottom lip, arms removing from Dipper's waist. Without looking down, Dipper could tell he was playing with his class ring. "He's not dead. I just knocked him out. The worst thing that could have happened to him was that he'd get a jumbo headache in the morning," Bill assured him. He lowered his eyes away from Dipper. 

"And?" Dipper prompted. He stopped playing with Bill's curls. "You promised you'd stop getting into alley fights, you promised! Bill, how could I date someone who can't keep one stupid promise? How could I keep doing this with you when all you do is ignore me, hurt me, make me feel like-?"

"He called you a _closet case,_ Dipper," Bill interrupted, his tone sharp and definitely angry. "The _nerve_ he had for..." He shook his head. "Then he told me that he knew about us and he'd ruin you," Bill added, this time more quietly. 

"He told me the same thing when he pushed me," Dipper sighed. "He tol-"

"He _what_?!" Bill thundered, eyes flashing with promise of definite murder. 

"Bill, calm down, he-"

"Oh, that is _it,_ " Bill snarled. "He wants to play games? Fine. I'll show him how much Bill Cipher can-"

Dipper cut him off with a chaste kiss to the mouth. "Bill, do you _ever_ stop threatening people?" he asked in annoyance, but the small upturn of his lips gave him away. "I'm fine, you're uh...as fine as you possibly can at the moment, and Kryptos is probably being taken in right now." His own words sunk into his brain and anxiety oozed into his body. 

"Which means they'll take _you_ in too for..." Dipper whispered, horror coating his words. 

Sensing his peril, Bill tilted Dipper's chin upwards, forcing him to meet Bill's soft, warm eyes. "I know," Bill assured him. "I know, Kitten."

"Bill, then that means you have to get out of here, as fast as you can. They'll- they'll find out about us, then we can't see each other anymore, and- and-" Dipper stammered. 

"Which is why I wanted to ask you something," said Bill. He gave Dipper his most dazzling smile, one that never failed to shut Dipper up, afraid that his words would be nothing but stutters. "I know you said you want to leave me and you think that being with me is probably the worst decision you ever-"

"I never said that!" Dipper argued. "Being with you was literally the _only_ good decision I ever made!"

Bill held up a hand, an elbow propped on the counter beside them. He chuckled, using that hand to hold Dipper's cheeks in between his fingers to give Dipper a kiss. "Thank God," he moaned, leaning away from Dipper. "If you didn't deny what I said I would have been in big trouble."

"Pardon?" Dipper frowned. 

"I mean," Bill drawled out. He inclined his head to the side, eyes never leaving Dipper's face. To watch for a reaction, maybe. He pulled out his class ring, right in front of Dipper. Dipper's eyes widened, jaw going slack. 

"Wear my ring and run away with me?" Bill asked him, hope coating his words. "I don't care where, I just want to be with you. No friends, no gang, just us. I promise."

"Oh, Bill," Dipper breathed, giving Bill a slight shake of the head. Not to decline his offer, but out of disbelief. "Of course I'll wear your ring! But...that's a lot to...take in...."

Bill chuckled at his dumbfounded look, moving a stray strand of bangs out of Dipper's forehead. He looked at Dipper's birthmark in slight awe. Usually, this would cue Dipper to blush and snap at him to stop looking, but all he could manage right now was little peeps of sounds coming from his mouth in shock. 

"I was going to do this whole shebang at a drive-in while being grossly romantic to you but-" Bill shrugged. He licked his lips, no longer resisting his urges to give Dipper at least one more kiss before he continued, making Dipper laugh wholeheartedly. 

"I had a feeling my ring would get stuck on my finger, then I'd have to try and get it out with the grease in my hair, then I'd accidentally elbow you, then when you say yes my hormones would go off the roof, I'd try to have sex with you right in the middle of the drive-in because hey why not, you'd smack my junk on my deuce while I try and hold my manhood in, and then being the nerd you are, you'll call my ride a 'sin wagon' which I would laugh at and-"

"Can you just shut up for once so I could enjoy this moment?" Dipper sighed, playfully smacking his shoulder. Bill chuckled at his irritation, trying to make up for it by peppering him with more kisses. 

"And by the way, that was a yes," Dipper mused, taking Bill's face in his hands. "To both questions." Mabel was going to kill him, he knew, but letters were born for a reason. And besides, he couldn't stand looking at her if she found out that he was with another man- Bill of all people too. Maybe one day he could live in a place where he could love Bill without everyone judging him, but that era wasn't today. But the thought that one day there might, where he could be happy with Bill one hundred percent, made him hope. 

Bill's face automatically lit up, like a kid in a candy store. He wrapped his arms back around Dipper's waist, pulling him back for another make out session. But after one kiss, he pulled away briefly to waggle his eyebrows at Dipper. "So what do you say, Kitten?" he purred, Dipper's pet name sounding extremely seductive and delightful on his tongue. 

"Wh- what?" Dipper laughed, hands on Bill's shoulders. 

"Come into my sin wagon and sin with me?" He wiggled his eyebrows and grinned in a wolfish way. 

"You horny little-" Dipper grumbled. 

"Hey, Boss? You in there? I thought I heard your voice somewhere in here!" Keyhole shouted from the outside. Someone pounded on the metal door of the abandoned diner, much to Bill's grumbling and Dipper's frozen state. 

"Bro-Bro? You okay? You didn't get kidnapped, now did you?" Mabel teased, but there was a drop of seriousness to it. She too began to pound on the door. 

"We have to get out of here," Dipper whispered harshly under his breath. He tried to get off of Bill's lap, but Bill simply held him in place like glue. "Bill, they'll find us!" he said in horror. 

"So? Let them," Bill mumbled, kissing the side of his cheek. "I'd much rather let them know that I love you than let them think that I don't."

And somehow, those words let him relax. He hugged Bill tight, close to his body. He pecked Bill's lips, the greaser humming in approval to his actions. "And I love you too," Dipper muttered against Bill's own lips. "But do you think what we're doing is right?"

"No." He pecked Dipper's lips next, his breath mingling with Dipper's. "But you're part of me now, Kitten. We're rebels without a cause, remember?"

"Yeah," Dipper answered tiredly. He pushed Bill's hair back, kissing him deeper. He felt Bill take hold of his wrist carefully, sliding a large cool metal around his left ring finger. Then that's when Bill kissed him back, responding to his giddy kisses with much more zest. 

The door swung open with an achingly slow creak, the chatter of worry fading away the moment they saw the greaser and the nerd entwined in their own summer loving. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got sick with a massive headache after a whole day of spending time with my crazy relatives. Buuut, I'm feeling a little better and hopefully I can have this all finished by next week! Hopefully .-.
> 
> Also, am I the only one imagining Bill say "Kitten" with this really, really flirtatious drawl because honestly, think of your own crush saying that to you in a low purring drawl like they just woke up next to you and they were calling out for you because they wanted to cuddle again and because I swear to God I just did and- oh, fascinating, I didn't need my ovaries anyway.


	6. It's Our Town, Everybody Scream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Long ago, two powerful witches, one chaotic and one ordered, had called for the deal with two separate mortals- bring them their first born on Summerween's night and they may have the power they wished they have. The only problem was that these stupid, useless mortals had married each other and birthed one healthy first born.
> 
> (This doesn't go well with the Summerween theme but I didn't know what to do, so forgive this shriveled up panda, thanks :,D)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Imma call them witches because "wizards" sound too nice and "warlocks" is apparently a bad thing to call a person haha. Also, I totally didn't name the little boy because of South Park, what do you mean, what haha okay enjoy goodnight I'm already blacking out from lack of sleep. And yes, the ending was rushed and stupid, fight me, mate.

"YOU TWO DID _WHAT?!"_ bellowed the two witches. 

The man, who Bill was currently giving his most terrible stink eye to, gave them a sheepish smile, putting a hand on his wife's arm while the baby was being rocked in her arms. "Bill, I am extremely sorry about this, but I didn't know. And anyway, you can still have the baby, it's just-"

"Oh ho-ho," Dipper laughed humorlessly, his eyes twinkling with murder. Even Bill was impressed with how much malice was interlaced with the other mage's eyes, but he refused to say it out loud. "So you're going to give this- this _imposter_ the baby and not _me_? Sarah, we had a deal!"

The woman gave Dipper her most apologetic smile in return. The baby still slept like a rock in her arms. "Dipper, Sir, I'm- _we_ are truly sorry about the inconvenience. We didn't know we made the same deal with two different witches so we just-"

"And none of you bothered to check?!" Dipper snapped. He threw his arms in the air, causing his magic to flare up and cause the branches behind him to go flying to what Bill thought might be some poor kid's crotch from fifty miles away. His face tattoos glowed a vibrant blue for a good moment, signifying that the mage had used his powers. 

"This is _unbelievable!_ What am I supposed to do now?! That baby was going to help me with my potions! I need him _now_ before my elixir become overdue and I become _nothing!_  The both of you need to give me that baby this _instant_!" 

If Dipper's rambling wasn't adorable enough, he actually stomped his foot. 

Bill snorted, every head (except for the baby's) turned to look at him in question. "While I usually help out other witches when I can," Bill began boredly, trying to cover up his amusement. "I can't help out now that the prize involves me. _I_ need that baby to let it grow and help me as an apprentice. If this boy grows up with a knockoff witch on a broom like this kid here, he won't be able to help me out."

Dipper's nose flared, his arms crossing in front of him protectively. "Well, Mr. Cipher, while you could always find a newborn baby to simply use an apprentice, I need that one particular baby! My deal needs _his_ blood, and-"

"Do I look like I _care,_ Pines?" Bill cut off crossly. The two of them stared down, ignoring the confused couple and their sleeping child. Bill found it funny that on the one particular day that they needed the baby, the little moron was born on that day. It was like dodging a bullet, if not for the fact that two witches needed that baby as much as the other. "Every knows that you and your sister are nothing but embarrassments to the coven!" Bill snarled. 

"Oh, and how about you?! You hide yourself in your little hut for centuries and only come out to try and take over the village, which always goes down in flames!" Dipper snapped back. He smirked when  Bill's face morphed into rage. "And quite literally too."

"Well excuse me, but it was _your_ fault and your stupid old great uncle that I didn't get to take over that village called Gravity Falls! If you didn't stop me like the witch traitor you are, I wouldn't be stuck in this mess with you!" Bill took a step forward, jabbing a callused finger harshly to the other's chest. Dipper didn't flinch, his fist clenching tighter around his broom like he was contemplating whacking Bill with it. 

"It was against the rules, you know that! Gravity Falls is under protection of my great uncle Ford and the whole witch coven, but you _still_ thought it was a good idea to-!" Dipper screamed at him.

"Hey, hey!" the man shouted, whistling and waving his arms over his head to catch their attention.

"WHAT!" Bill and Dipper snapped in unison, both heads turning to him in irritation. 

The newborn was crying in the mother's arms, the woman trying her best to calm him down with soothing noises and rocking motions, but to no avail. Bill wrinkled his nose. As much as he hated children, he needed to injure it in order to get an apprentice and take over the world. One village at a time, of course. 

"Look, I know how you witches work," the man said weakly. He seemed to become smaller under their intense gazes, despite the crown on his head, marking him as a king. That was part of the deal he wanted from Bill- become ruler of a village and Bill gets his newborn. "You folks don't like working in pairs or groups, un- unless it's for a ritual and all. But...don't you think it would be a good idea if one of you gets the baby for half of the year and the other also gets the other half of the year?"

"Absolutely not," Dipper and Bill snapped. 

"I need the baby all year long, you buffoon!" Bill hissed. 

"And I can't just have a baby for half the year, I need his blood for three hundred sixty five days a year!" Dipper snapped. 

The man and the woman glanced at each other uncertainly, the baby calming down in her arms. Her crown started to fall off so she pushed it back up with a hand, eyes turning to look at Dipper. Her part of the deal with the Pines boy was apparently the exact same with Bill's- become ruler in exchange of a baby. Bill scowled as she spoke. 

"Dipper, Sir, I don't mean any harm but- it's all Abraham and I have to offer left. Either the two of you get the baby for half the year each or you don't get the baby at all," she told him, her tone quiet and apologetic, like Dipper was going to blast her to sit in the freezing river down below. Bill sure would. 

"You give me the baby or the two of you suffer!" Dipper snapped. He reached out with his empty hand, reaching out for the baby in his victim's hands. But neither the woman or the man moved. "Well? What are the two of you waiting for?! Give it to me!" he bellowed. His brown eyes glistened in the moonlight, giving it a flare of anger. The curve of his lip was turned in a scowl, twitching when he saw that the mortal couple still did not move. 

To say the least, Bill was impressed by his authority. Usually, during coven, Dipper Pines would be the one witch who would refuse to make a blood sacrifice, looking queasy as his sister did it for him. Bill always thought he was the weakest of them all, only making it up for his smart aerial tactics for all of them to use during raids. But looking at him now, Bill wondered how exactly the boy didn't decide to rule on his own instead.

"But...Bill Cipher told me that if I didn't give him the baby, he would cut off my limbs," his dealer spoke softly. "With all due respect, I would love to keep my limbs."

Bill sneered. "Of course you would. You mortals cannot regenerate limbs," Bill said. He turned to look at Dipper, giving the brown-haired witch his most ugly sneer. "I'm taking the baby and that's final."

"You? Have you forgotten that I could easily destroy both these humans' lives _and_ give their village a huge case of small pox? They're going to give me the baby and you're going to walk away like a good man and never return!" Dipper snapped at him. 

Bill narrowed his eyes. "They're going to give _me_ the baby." 

"No, I am."

"I am!"

"I'll have the baby and you're not!"

"You don't even need as much as I do! I have plans, bigger than-!"

"I don't _care,_ I'm taking the baby and you're-"

"Stop talking over me, you low blood! I'm-!"

"With all due respect, will the two of you quit _talking_?!" the man shouted.

"No one asked you or Sarah, Abraham! I need that baby or-" Bill bellowed. 

"It's not that!" Abraham snapped at them. Bill and Dipper closed their mouths shut, glaring down at him to get him to finally talk before they waste any more time near a stupid mortal village. In turn, Abraham stared down at the both of them, eyes flickering uncertainly to each witch. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, massaging his temples.

The wind picked up around them, Bill's robes flapping around him like a timely ghost. Dipper's outfit was certainly disturbing the young witch, his hat almost being taken by the air before he snatched it back with a huff. The mother, Sarah, was rocking the sleeping baby, all the while giving her husband an uncertain look to what ever plan he had. 

"You said the two of you must have the baby all year long, correct?" he asked, face as tired as his words. 

"Yes," Dipper and Bill answered automatically. 

"So," Abraham Richter said, watching their faces for a reaction. "Why don't the two of you...you know, build a bigger hut and live together with the baby?"

Sentenced into silence, Bill and Dipper gaped at the mortal man. 

Bill, personally, thought it was the stupidest, most inconsiderable idea in the entire world. 

But it was, he had to admit, effective. 

All he had to do was build the hut in a way that he never had to see the other. Dipper Pines gets one side and he gets the other, with the little demon choosing between two whenever the other needed him. It was as simple as that and he liked the idea.

"Fine," Bill grumbled. He put down his broom stick lower, swinging one leg over it to take off and find a place to build over the next few days. "For a human, your ideas aren't so bad. I'm going to find an empty lot to use as leverage for the hut and-"

"But Bill Cipher," Abraham interrupted. Bill gave him an unamused look. Abraham smiled sheepishly in return. He put a hand on his wife's shoulder. "You said you needed the baby now."

Dipper nodded to his words. The Pines boy turned to look at Bill. "I need the baby. I get to have him to myself for these few days while you-" Dipper grunted. 

"No," Bill snapped. "Either we do this together or no one gets the baby at all."

Dipper stared at him, in both disbelief and surprise. 

"Fine," he finally settled. "You'll be staying at my hut. It's the most practical housing to keep a child and my family had moved out eons ago. Is that good enough for you?" he grunted. To Bill's surprise, the Pines boy stepped forward, holding out a hand. A hand, he was surprised to see even more, had no rings. A witch with no rings was like a human with virginity. Extremely hard to find these days, but valuable. 

Something in his stomach stirred, an excitement he hadn't felt since his first love centuries ago. 

A kind of jealousy, mixed in with protectiveness. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought-

Bill shook this off, scowling to himself. Christ, was he going to fall for any witch that was pure? He shook his head, reaching out with a hand and giving Dipper Pines's empty hand a firm shake.

He got away from the stupid curse for centuries, he wasn't about to start now.  

"Well, it's settled then. What did you name the boy?" Bill asked, quickly unhooking his hand from Dipper's, like an electrical shock. 

The couple smiled down at their newborn, the one they knew they were going to give away. It was a little messed up, for them to seem so happy, but Bill had seen more twisted things in his life. 

"His name is Isaac," the mother cooed. 

Bill turned to look at his new companion. "Well, Ike it is then. Come, show me and our child to this musky hut of yours."

Before they left, the Richter family glanced at each other. And smiled. 

* * *

****Dipper watched him with a judging gaze, holding Ike in his arms as Bill marched inside. "Was it really necessary to bring two boxes full of empty skeleton heads, Cipher?" Dipper sniffed. He rocked the baby again when it cried out. He seemed a little uncomfortable holding the little human in his arms.

"Yes. Yes it is," Bill snipped. He set the boxes down to the floor, along with the rest of his boxes full of his belongings. All of them were full of strange things, some even stranger than what a witch might call normal. Jars of toenails, skulls, bottles of smelly liquid, etcetera. 

Dipper sighed, kicking a box with a toe. "Where are you even going to put all of this? There is no way in Elysium you're going to put this all in my ro-" he warned. 

"I won't, I won't. You're acting like I'm going to look through all your secret diaries if I live here," Bill answered dryly. 

"Well, you might as well will," Dipper snapped. Realizing what he said, his face blanked, his ears looking tingly red. "Oh- I meant- that's not- I- I don't really have a-" he stammered. 

Bill cut him off a snort, bending down to open one of the boxes. He pulled out a whole broomstick from the tiny box (magic, duh) and let it lean against the wall. "Look kid, I don't care if you have a fetish for toenails or snore, I just want that baby to grow up so I can rule the world and I can be out of here, alright?" Bill told him. Maybe he said it a little irritably, but what can a witch do? 

Dipper's ears warmed, but out of anger. He could squeeze the life out of the kid if he could. "What is it with you and calling me 'kid'? That was the eighth time you called me that and you only arrived on _my_ property two minutes ago, lugging all these- these junk in here!" Dipper shouted at him, kicking one of the boxes harder to prove his point. 

In response, Bill quirked an eyebrow. Honestly, this little witch was the cutest thing he's seen in _centuries!_ Man, this kid was a riot. But hell save them if he was to ever admit that out loud. 

"Well, _kid,_ " Bill slurred, Dipper's angered face angering more at his slow pronunciation. "I hope you know that this isn't just your property. It's ours, whether you like it or not, for the time being at least. And secondly, kid, I call you kid because you are. You're only five hundred twenty-two."

Dipper's face reddened deeper, angry at Bill and angry that he couldn't do anything about, not without causing trouble. "So?! You literally can't be that much older than me. You cannot just go around calling everyone one hundred years younger than you a-!"

"Kid," Bill interrupted. He gave Dipper a pointed look. "When you first joined the coven, who did the elders look at first for guidance?"

Dipper's brow furrowed. "You, I suppose. But they only asked you because you took that side of the village, not..." He trailed off.

Bill tried to stop the smirk from coming onto his lips. But he couldn't help it. Oh, this was going to be fun, staying in the same house as this witch until they built a bigger hut. Very fun indeed. "They looked at me because I was the wisest. And I don't mean just in that particular coven, Pines, I mean the wisest of all witches."

"You sound like my sister. Egotistical. But at least _she_ knows her limits, whereas you spit out false harbingers from your mouth like you own the place!" Dipper spat. 

Man, this kid was adorable. He supposed every young inexperienced witch was, but oh well. "Kid, do you not think for one moment why your elders are wary of me? Or why I seem to disappear until the next sacrificial? Or why there is no such thing as the Original Thirteen anymore?"

Dipper had a look on his face that mirrored his confusion. He was a smart kid, the smartest of everyone in the coven. He made their aerial plans, their elixirs, and answered every question thrown at him flawlessly. Bill could practically see the gears turning in his head, working over time to decode Bill's riddle-like words. And when he realized what he meant, his face contorted into one of complete disbelief. 

"You? The killer and traitor of the Thirteen? Yeah, sure," Dipper scoffed. 

Already enough with Dipper's games, Bill rolled his eyes and rolled up one of his sleeves. That shut Dipper up and the young witch was forced to watch him reach out to the sharp wooden stake rammed into the wall, plucking it right out. He palmed it with his other hand then without warning, sliced open his palm with it. The young witch let out a gasp of surprise, right before closing his mouth to let Bill do whatever the hell he was trying to do. 

With the blood dripping to the floor, the color an unnatural black, Bill brought up his palm to his forehead and swiped right across. His whole head felt like it was splitting open. But he only hissed, muscles straining under his skin. 

By the time he had dropped his hand away from his forehead, Dipper was already gaping, his face a ghostly white. He tried to step back with the little boy clutched tighter in his arms. Not out of anger, but out of fear. 

His eyes had turned a blood red, the pupils turned into black slits. His blood-stained forehead bubbled and smoked, until it left nothing but a deep scar. A triangle, a simple cut-shaped triangle to ward off his true powers to emerge and cause more death of witches (which were already against the rules to begin with) from happening. It marked him as the killer, the last singular witch left of the Original Thirteen. 

"Now do you believe me?" Bill smirked, rubbing away the blood from his forehead to hide the scar once more. It hurt like a hunter was staking his forehead open, but he could manage. 

Dipper mutely watched him, mouth slightly agape. He looked speechless, but not for the reason Bill wanted. He wanted the Pines boy to be impressed and come to his knees, worshiping Bill Cipher, the lost killer commanded into banishment of his true powers. But instead, Dipper looked at him like he was a monster, face pale and body noticeably trembling. 

With someone else, Bill would have sneered at them and called them a coward for being so afraid of a person who could no longer hurt them. But the Pines boy- why did he feel as if he was going to be sick? There were no weakness herbs in here, were there?

"You do know I can't hurt you, right?" Bill chuckled, but it felt dry, even to him. "I'm cursed, kid. I cannot hurt anyone as long as the magic your stupid elders put on me stay up. If you want more comfort, one of those elders was your great uncle Ford." He said the last bit maybe a little bit too sourly, but honestly he didn't care. Ford Pines was the sole and only reason why he hadn't burned everyone down at the stake yet and that frustrated him to no end. 

Dipper visibly relaxed being told about his great uncle, a sure sign that the young witch idolized his wise elder great uncle. The baby still did not move in his arms. "Right. Right..." Dipper mumbled, refusing to meet Bill's eyes. 

Bill glanced at the magic mirror right beside him, probably used to contact his relatives from around the world. He realized that his eyes were still blood-like and slitted, giving him a scarier look than he already had on with his normal neutral face. He willed them to disappear, blinking twice. 

He looked back at Dipper. "It's past midnight, Pines. You should take the Ike to sleep on a bed," he crooned. 

Dipper looked back up at him, finally meeting his eyes with no sign of fear left in his eyes. Bill somehow felt...glad? "Yeah, you're right. I need to harvest a vial of his blood in the morning so I need him as well-rested as he could," Dipper said. He hiked the baby more comfortably on his arm, hushing the child softly when it began to stir. 

Bill crossed his arms, leaning against the hut's strong walls. He smiled when Dipper planted a kiss on top of little Ike's forehead, one hand coming up to wipe the saliva off the baby's mouth.

The Pines boy caught him staring, glancing up in question. "Can I help you?" he asked uncertainly.

"Look at you, Pines," Bill purred, "you're already caring about little Ike and the night hasn't even ended."

Dipper looked unamused as he looked up. His tattoos looked bright in the candlelight of the boy's hut, giving him a somewhat sinister look. The only thing that ruined it was the baby bundled in his arms, wrapped in a soft blanket that the young witch himself had insisted getting. Witches, man or woman, never have babies, might as well grow to love one. Saying that was basically the root of offensive. 

"Just help me get this little one to lay on the crib without it screaming bloody murder," Dipper sighed. 

"As you wish, my love," Bill drawled out, marching towards the brunet. 

The witch looked up, startled by his choice of words. "The day I become your 'love' is the day my beloved sister gets herself a decent lover as well," Dipper answered dryly. 

Bill laughed, already sidled up besides the stammering fool. Witches were known for constant flirting, no matter if it was another witch or a drop-beat mortal. A witch's way of flirting was never ever more than just that, so to flirt with Dipper was just a simple joke. And to flirt back was just that as well. 

He took the baby from him as gently as he possibly could. Silently, he walked up the creaky stairs of Dipper's witch hut, trying as best as he could to step where it was least creaky to ensure that the baby didn't wake up. 

Together, they climbed up the steps, Dipper hot on Bill's heels. They entered the nursery Dipper had created from a spare room and shut the door right behind them, in case someone tried to sneak up. Quietly, Bill placed the baby on the makeshift crib they created just hours ago, tucking the little guy in with the blankets already on the mattress. 

Dipper peered down at the baby, a look of interest plastered on his young face. "Healthy kid," Dipper mumbled. "He'll grow up to something great if raised by the right people." His eyes searched the boy's sleeping form, the enchanted candle lights on the wall making his eyes seem like golden rays circling the eclipse of the moon. While the young witch was entranced by the mortal in front of them, Bill Cipher was enchanted by his captivating eyes. 

Quickly, before he could see the other looking at him, Bill averted his eyes. This would soon quickly pass, he tried to tell himself. That this little mortal stage named Eros would leave and he certainly was _not_ falling for a witch he considered his bitterest enemy despite not knowing the other quite well. 

Dipper couldn't help himself to touching the baby again, reaching out for little Ike almost subconsciously, his lips pressed together tightly. He brushed the side of Ike's chubby cheek, the underside of his thumb playing with the soft skin. Probably looking for how able-bodied the youth was, considering how observant the brunet was about absolutely everything. Bill decided to stay and watch, maybe just a little longer, until they had to go to sleep. 

The other witch did not stir from his mumbling about the baby's condition for quite a while, forcing the older to look out the window in disinterest. Summerween, a holiday made up by the small village of Gravity Falls, was a perfect holiday for people like them. Instead of being burned at the stake and egged on, witches were worshiped on this one night. This was truly evident by the fact that no one had come by and screamed at them for being the way they were. Or how people actually passed by to yell and chant their thank yous and apologizes before moving on. 

When the sun ascended, Bill was certain that they had to hide the hut with magic all over again. 

Especially now that they have a mortal child with them. 

Oh, how much humans loved to twist things like that. A mortal child with two witches was enough for them to start an angry mob, pitchforks and all. 

"Bill? Were you even listening to me?"

Startled, Bill looked back at his companion. The other witch was looking at him quite uncertainly, his elbows now resting on the crib's lining. "My apologizes, I was looking at the remaining trick or treaters," Bill apologized. 

"What for? They'll do us no harm for tonight," Dipper said. He sighed, retracting his elbows away from the wood. The baby slept like a rock beneath them. "But as for the morning..."

"I will take care of them. Make your elixir with the child's blood in the morning, I'll busy myself with casting the spell."

Dipper beamed at him. It was such a sight to see such a pretty face smile at him like that. It was almost...unimaginable. "You have my gratitude, Bill Cipher."

Feeling confident, Bill leaned forward and planted a kiss on his companion's forehead, the same one that bore his mark and his namesake. Not of romance, but of reassurance, like how a friend would kiss your cheek as a farewell. But surely, he wanted it to be even just a _little_ bit tender, by all means? 

"For the remaining original, you're quite affectionate to your companions, Cipher," Dipper mused. But even then, he allowed the other to wrap his arms around his waist and place a chin on top of his head. 

Bill didn't know what the other thought of his...advances, nor did he want to know. Hell, he didn't know what he was doing either. This was the witch who took his freedom from him! The same witch he formerly met just a couple hours ago, on a hill arguing about a deal gone _wrong_!

But somehow, embracing the younger witch and breathing his earthly scent was enough for him to go to heaven. Not once in the last few centuries had he felt this content and he did not know why. And he didn't _want_ to know why. 

"Is there something the matter, Cipher?" Dipper asked, tilting his head up just a little to meet his eyes. Clearly, the smart witch had felt his disturbance. 

"I'll be fine, Pines. Just take your leave and rest for the night, hmm? I'll try and see if I can get the spell working before the sun-" Bill answered.

"Absolutely not," Dipper argued. He pulled away from Bill, snapping his wrist so that his tattoos glowed, bursting the candles in the room to nothing but smoke. The only light left in the room was the moon, casting them in a brilliant silver luminous glow. "You're going to wait until dawn. That's an order."

"Yes, as you wish," Bill said with a roll of his eyes. Such the commanding one, this witch. 

"So, top or bottom?" Dipper spoke. 

"Top," Bill answered immediately. Eagerly, even. 

"Huh," Dipper grumbled. He inspected the walls of the nursery, probably to see if they had missed a bare spot. He shifted his weight a little, causing the weak wood underneath them to creak, just slightly. But still, the baby did not stir. "I thought you'd pick bottom as it's the safest bet, but sure, I'll be bottom for tonight."

"My, Pine Tree, I know you wanted me bad but I didn't know you wanted me _now,_ " Bill drawled, words laced with flirtatiousness. He would be the worst liar in the history of liars if he did not feel himself become excited. 

Dipper glanced at him, even if it was just for a moment. But Bill had seen the confusion right before he turned to look back at the window. "I was talking about my bed, Bill. Either the floor or the actual bed." Dipper shook his head, as if to clear some thoughts. "I always find myself falling on the floor when I sleep on top," he added as an afterthought. 

"Oh." He was a liar if he didn't admit that he sounded completely and utterly disappointed. But he was glad that the other was a prude and didn't understand sexual innuendos as well as the next witch would. 

As if the brunet had heard his relieved thoughts, Dipper turned to look at him. A quirk of the lips, a twinkle in his eyes- he was clearly amused. "And if I wanted to bed you, Cipher, I would have done it a long time ago."

Bill decided to grumble. "Well, you are to live with me for the few months until we could build a decent hut. There is beyond a doubt that you will one day fall for me and certainly be more than willing to be my bottom."

Dipper only hummed. Witch flirting. Right. "I won't lead you on to your fantasies, Bill Cipher, but I won't stop them either," the witch teased. He turned to face Bill, tugging the other down to his height level with his magic, an invisible fist clenched around the collar of his clothing. 

They stared at each other for a long while, grinning like maniacs who would find each other at a drunkard's pub. Bill could even see his reflection in the other's glossy brown eyes, his own face grinning at the prospect of being so close to this handsome face. 

That was until Dipper had leaned forward and gave him a chaste peck on the lips.

No, it was not meant to profess his love to the other like the way mortals thought of lip kisses. It was a teasing peck, like he knew that Bill wanted him. That Bill craved him and that was the only way he knew how to let it bubble slightly below the surface before Bill could push him for more. 

Dipper pressed his finger against Bill's nose, chuckling when the other tried to lean in for more. Bill pouted like a mortal child being denied candy, eyes dark and wide. 

"You're certainly a strange one, Bill Cipher," Dipper tittered. "I swear to everything above that you are going to be such a pain in the side for the next few months," he sighed. 

"Mm." Bill nuzzled his nose to the other's shoulder, arms around the witch's waist. One can tell you right now that Bill was not an affectionate person, not even close. He never got those touch cravings other witches needed to live for, or the cravings for sensual things. But maybe this mage could change those things for him. 

"We should rest," Dipper suggested. He tried his best to push Bill away from him, but to no avail. Bill clung to him like wet clothes were to skin. "Why are you so affectionate!" he said in exasperation. 

"Because I want to bed you," Bill teased, words muffled by the shoulder to his nose. Under the flirting, Bill kind of wanted just that. He certainly wouldn't mind it.

"My Gods, you're like my sister's suitors. Clingy and never to go away unless she or I blast them away to a frog dimension," Dipper groaned. He paused, thinking about for a while. "Perhaps sending you to a frog dimension with the help of my dearest sister wouldn't be half bad," he hummed. 

Bill let go of him almost immediately. It was no secret that the Pines twins were very good at magic, maybe even better than he was. Dipper could control his magic quite well, but his sister's magic was unpredictable. 

Dipper laughed at how quickly the other had let go of him, rolling his sore shoulder. He pivoted around and walked all the way to the doorway, not once looking back at Bill. Then he stopped, looking over his shoulder, and purred, "Well, when you're ready to go to bed, just change out and rest. Dream of me when you sleep."

Bill grinned at him. He looked down, just briefly, to the sleeping form of their joined custody. Then he looked back up at the brunet staring at him for an answer, the quirk of his lips still evident. 

"Well," Bill drawled. "That wouldn't be a problem. You're already in my dreams, Pine Tree."

* * *

****"This is the last time I'm going to leave the front door open," Bill grumbled.

Dipper breathed out a laugh, barely flinching as Bill sat down beside him. The older witch grunted, rubbing his face with his hand. It was a good thing he was immortal, or else he would have died from a heart attack and panic attack simultaneously. Bed- empty. Toddler soundlessly asleep in his own room- not there. Both his companion and Ike- gone without a trace in the middle of the stark night. 

"Forgive me. He wanted to see the little 'puppies' outside the door," Dipper explained. 

"What puppies?" 

In answer, Dipper nodded to the layers upon layers of trees in front of them, their silhouettes overshadowed by the quickly rising sun. It wouldn't be long until the sun climbed up from the hill and showered them in golden light, bringing their home back into darkness. 

There, in the middle of the bare forest, was little Ike, playing with two baby deer. The little boy was now a healthy toddler, already getting the hang of the outside world. He grew quite fond of both Dipper and Bill due to their constant bonding, once in a while calling them his fathers. Bill found it amusing, especially since it made Dipper just a tad bit embarrassed. Today he was to turn four. 

"You don't need to hide the hut this time, right?" Dipper inquired. Before Bill could have the chance to answer, the brunet had scooted closer to him, placing his heavy head onto the other's shoulder like a pillow. Years of enduring this kind of affection trained poor Bill not to flinch at the contact. 

"Of course not, my love. For someone quite brilliant, you are very forgetful. It's Summerween. If anything, we should celebrate the love by hanging a sign telling everyone from a fifty mile radius to visit real life witches," Bill chuckled. And he was not kidding. 

Dipper grumbled. "I'd much rather celebrate our protege's birthday with only the three of us," he said. 

"Mm." Bill planted a kiss on the side of his head. "Ask and you shall receive. I think I like your idea better anyway."

Dipper grew quiet beside him, content to watching their little boy play with the deer in the forest. Ike kept laughing every time they ate the crumbs off his hand, bouncing around to get them to follow him to certain spots in the forest before taking off to initiate a race. It was a heartwarming sight, if Bill had to admit it. 

"Did you bring Ike anything for his birthday?" Dipper suddenly asked. 

In response, Bill snapped his fingers, conjuring a small round cake he baked in the kitchen the day before (magic was such a useful thing when it came to keeping things fresh). He set it down on the damp grass in front of him, sodden from the rain that had hit this certain spot in the country. It ruined his tunics, but witches didn't have magic just for evil incantations and sacrifices. "And how about you?" he asked his companion in mild curiosity.

Dipper brought out a little dagger from the inside of his own robes, setting it down beside Bill's poorly baked cake. "He's four. I started learning how to kill for self-defense when I was only two in human years. This is...what human parents do, right?" The young witch scratched his cheek uncertainly, looking down at the sheathed dagger with a squint. 

Bill then laughed at his worrisome behavior, planting an affectionate kiss on the witch's lips. Just one quick peck for an adorable action. "I'm sure they do just that," Bill assured him. "And besides, Ike is growing up with witches for the rest of his life and one day he'll be accepted into the coven with immortal aging. There is no need to treat him less than a witch."

"But he's still human," Dipper said. "Surely he might miss being-?"

"He was taken away when he was _born,_ " Bill reminded him. "And no matter, you're a great...fatherly figure, I suppose. If not, then a little fussy at times."

"Hey!" Dipper argued. 

Bill laughed, swinging an arm around his partner's shoulders to draw him closer. Dipper let him, used to his loving shenanigans. He only grumbled, burying his face into the older witch's chest snugly. 

While Bill thought of their interactions of something resembling close to romantic love, Dipper thought of it as nothing more than a rapport friendship. 

He hated it. 

They cuddled when they started sleeping in the same bed, they decided that building a new hut was worthless, they cooked together, they gave each other pecks on the lips, and even once, just _once_ to see how it felt like- bedded the other. But never once had Dipper expressed anything more than this...this form of intimacy barrier they had. 

Bill was desperate for more than their one-sided love. He wanted Dipper to think of him twenty-four seven, he wanted Dipper to feel the urge to kiss him as he always did, and he wanted Dipper to just feel the goddamned same as he did. But witches don't have soulmates, or lovers for more than a couple nights, or even feel the need to. Dipper was a traditional man to these standards. 

Bill, to put it simply, was the complete and utter opposite as to one would call traditional. 

"You're not the man I thought you were going to be when I first formally met you, you know," Dipper murmured. 

"Same goes for you, Pine Tree." He nudged the brunet. "But you're still as annoying as you were back then, unfortunately."

Dipper snorted. "Oh please. At least I don't cuddle the other to death at night whispering things about how much you love them," he said wryly. He headbutted Bill's chin a little to get his attention when Bill only breathed out a laugh.

"You have a point there," Bill grunted. "But while I may be a swindler, I do not lie about who I love."

"And I love you too."

His heart lurched. Suddenly, he was not out in the open for anyone to find them, but only with the younger witch. The effect words had was a mystery to him. How can such words, a few simple words tailored in one simple order, make someone like him become so happy and excited? 

And most of all, how can words become double meanings without the speaker meaning to, deceiving a man who had never been loved back and so desperately wanted to be? How can a misinterpretation get so loose into a person's head that it would drive them insane?

"Do my ears deceive me or did you just profess your undying love for me?" Bill wondered, his voice nothing but a reticent, rumbling mess. If he spoke louder, he was afraid it would come out as nothing more than a crackle, like a prisoner asking for their last dying wish. 

"Bill, you brute," Dipper scolded, pushing him away almost playfully. Bill only laughed, not getting why Dipper had suddenly grown serious, his face devoid of the flusteredness Bill was hoping for, _desperate_ for. 

"You're my friend, Bill," Dipper spoke again, almost sheepishly at his sudden proclamation. He locked eyes with the other witch, his brown eyes still as enchanting as Bill had thought they were on the first day he fell in love. The gloom of the approaching sun shadowed Dipper's face handsomely, allowing Bill to drink him in. His lips, goodness, _his lips_. They looked heavenly, enticing Bill to come closer, to just...

"Naturally, you know I love you. You are a dear friend."

"I-" Bill blinked, quickly sitting down on his behind. He didn't realize that he was leaning in until Dipper furrowed his brow, watching Bill in worry. "Yes, of course. I...I just thought..."

Now, Dipper Pines was no naive witch. He knew when he was being left out on something, especially when it was as obvious as this. Bill didn't need to wear a sign for him to understand the bitter disappointment on his face. Bill didn't even have to speak it, just as Dipper had done with him. 

"Oh," was all he said. 

The brunet kept opening and closing his mouth, looking at a lost for words. Bill didn't blame him. If he was in this kid's situation, he would have ran off and never saw the other's face again. But Dipper was much more mature than that, despite being all in all a young witch. 

Out in the forest, the trees coming into detail due to the shining light coming from behind, Ike sat on the floor, worn down by his constant running. The baby deer had jumped away a long time ago, seeing the light coming over the horizon to signal their return. 

"I'm sorry," Dipper said to the air. Bill barely caught his mumbling words. 

"No, don't be," Bill assured him. "I have lived through many lovers. You're no exception." _But this is the first time I felt truly attached to someone quite like you, Dipper Pines._

"Yes. I knew that. But I still feel terrible." Dipper paused, taking a moment to formulate the words in his head before he blurted them out like most humans did. "How long have you...?"

"Just today," Bill lied through his teeth. _From the very first glance I saw you,_ was the truth. "And since it's only been today, I'll get over it rather quickly."

Even with his reassurance, Dipper still looked upset. It was how the Pines boy acted, he noticed. He hated letting people down, even when it was not his fault. Suddenly, Bill wanted to wrap the boy in his arms and comfort him. But all intimacy between them had broken into nothing but awkwardness.

Dipper cleared his throat, clearly feeling as awkward as Bill felt. He turned his gaze away from the witch beside him, now looking at the little boy casually picking at the grass at his feet. "Ike! Isaac! C'mere!" he hollered, making a circle with his hands to use as a makeshift megaphone. He could have easily used a spell to vocalize his words louder, but Bill supposed it was funner that way. 

"Coming, papa!" laughed the giddy little boy. He stood up, almost falling down all over again before he regained his balance and waddled over to them, his hair bobbing on his head. He outstretching his arms, laughing playfully. He had full confidence that his two 'fathers' would catch him before he fall and scraped his knee, as he always believed. 

Dipper and Bill, not once looking at each other, crouched down and held out their own arms, waiting for the little boy to crash against them. 

And he did, smothering them in between both their arms. Ike laughed louder, his body humming with the type of energy only a bunny can. The little one nuzzled them, happy and at home in their arms. 

"Alright, you can stop that now," Dipper chuckled, pulling away almost reluctantly from Ike. 

Ike simply nodded his head to his words, happy to make his dad happy. "Did you remember today, papa? Did you? Did you?" he asked, jumping up and down on his heels. 

Dipper and Bill laughed together at his excitement, finally at ease now that their protege was here. They needed to pretend that whatever happened lately never happened for the time being, just to ensure that their little boy could have a day to remember. It was a special occasion, after all. 

"Yes, we both remembered. We both got you presents too," Dipper said. He took the sheathed dagger from the floor, taking Ike's wrist to place the weapon right on the boy's chubby little fingers. The fingers curled around the present curiously, Ike's head tilted to the side in question. 

"What is it, papa?" Ike asked, craning his head up to look at Dipper. He gasped softly. "Is it candy?"

"No, no. It's not candy, Ike. It's a self-defense weapon," Dipper laughed. Carefully, he placed his long fingers on top of Ike's sheathing the dagger together. When the dagger was presented in its beauty, writing scrabbled on the flat side of the blade in their own language and the hilt beautifully decorated with gems, Ike gasped even louder in wonder. "I will teach you how to fight and defend yourself until you become a warrior. Does that sound like fun?"

"Mhm!" Ike grinned. Dipper sheathed the weapon. 

"What did daddy get me?" Ike asked again, sounding beyond excited. It was no secret that Bill was his favorite dad, as Bill spoiled him a little too often with presents from his trips and for no reason at all than to spoil the kid. 

Bill let the cake float in front of the kid, almost teasingly, before letting it fall in the four year old's hands. Ike looked down at it with the biggest grin on his face. "Cake!" Bill grinned. "Happy birthday to you, kid."

"Cake!" Ike repeated, laughing happily. 

Ike accidentally let it drop to the floor, cake and frosting staining the grass and dirt. Dipper winced at the sight, yelping when Ike made a startled noise. Bill clamped his mouth shut, staring down at the cake everyone was looking at in pity. "I felt like a slave making that cake," he said solemnly. 

"Cake!" Ike laughed. He stomped on the cake, whooping as he coated the two witches with frosting. "Cake, cake, cake!" he chanted. 

Dipper laughed at the human's predictable behavior, curling his knees up to his chest. He watched, with his chin propped on top of his knees, as the little mortal ran around them in circles, screaming cake and occasionally stuffing some in his mouth. 

As always, it seems, Bill found himself eyeing Dipper instead of what Dipper was staring at instead. There were things people and other witches didn't know about his curse. They say he was cursed to never perform magic ever again. Some say he can't love. And one rumor even said that he would turn into one of the hideous beasts at night on ever Summerween, on the day he killed his whole coven.

But no one knew that he could still perform any type of magic. No one knew he was more than capable of loving another, if not even longer than most. No one knew that he did not turn into a hideous beast on the day he killed them, but was harnessed with a curse no one would ever have wanted. 

The one he loved most could never, ever love him back. 

Bill dropped his eyes away from the witch. But it settled it, didn't it? If he wasn't cursed, Dipper would have loved him back. They would have raised this human child together like real human parents, maybe even better. They would have shared moments together even a romancer would have been jealous of. They would have ruled together. They would have loved each other, the end. 

He almost laughed at his stupidity. This was all his fault. 

And it was all his fault that he had forgotten to set up some protection hexes, even for just precaution. It was all his fault that he did not hear the shouting before it drew too close, or sensed the warning shot coming before the arrow shot clean through his shoulder. 

He howled in pain, the blindingly white type of torment sucking out of all his energy. He saw nothing but white, and heard nothing but chanting, one word that should have been celebrated on this one day. 

Witch. Witch. _Witch._

He gasped in sharp pain when he brought his good hand up, grasping the arrow and pulling it out with the muscle tightening around the shaft to make all the worst. Bone was now see through his shoulder and neck, dark blood falling to the vibrant green of the grass. 

"Bill, oh my God-" Dipper gasped, scrambling forward to his partner. He tried to help Bill as best as he could, even going to great lengths with ripping a part of his pant leg off, pressing the rough fabric on Bill's shoulder hopelessly. Ike, frightened by the chanting in the distance and the look of illness on his caretaker's face, had curled himself in Dipper's arm, the dagger clutched close to his chest.

"No!" Bill screamed. He took Dipper by the shoulders, lifting them both up despite the great pain coming from his arm. It was starting to feel numb, past the point of shock. "No, Dipper, you can't help me right now, I'm-"

"They're looking for _us_!" Dipper screamed back. The fright in his eyes almost broke down the older witch. His kind were meant to hunt humans and other supernatural beings with an iron fist. Not this. "Bill, we have to get out of here, we don't- don't have time to get back into the hut and get our brooms, we need to-" 

"I'm going to make sure they never hurt you again," Bill murmured. 

His words were quiet, almost silenced in the mob from the background. But Dipper, the poor young boy, had heard him quite well. His eyes widened in panic. "Bill, nononono _no_ \- I'm not going to-"

"They're human." Bill inclined his head. "I am a witch. The cursed. I am immortal. It is impossible to kill me." _But on this one god-forsaken day, I am vulnerable._

"Bill-" Dipper whimpered. For the life of him, Bill had thought he was going to apologize. _I love you,_ were the words the other wanted to truly say. And he meant it exactly the way Bill had. 

"Don't," Bill said, voice barely above a whisper. He planted a lingering kiss on Dipper's forehead, rubbing little Ike's head messily. His eyes stayed on Dipper as the mob chanted on, screaming "witch", over and over again. "I need you to run. Run, as fast as you can. Keep Ike safe. _Run,_ Dipper!" 

That day, Bill Cipher was burned at the stake in the middle of the village ruled by the Richter family who accused him of taking their lost eldest son. But beside him, Dipper Pines had chosen to ignite with him. However, they hid their little Ike to grow up in a coven, to grow up and take revenge on the cursed couple who never got to love.

That one fateful year, the citizens of Gravity Falls failed to kill the real Summerween Trickster, as the real one was a bitter immortal man named Isaac Richter who punished anyone that made fun of the seemingly little holiday. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Are you, are you, coming to the tree? Where the dead man called out, for his love to flee." This took a while and it's still so trashy omg I'm so sorry. One day I will learn how to switch this around and make Dipper the love-sick victim, one day.
> 
> Also, as you have noticed, I didn't do the last day (Cabin in the Woods)! I'm so so sorry, I can't give a good explanation even if I tried haha.


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